Millions of people are looking for ways to send money to various parts of Asia including Singapore, India and China. In China alone, more than 50 million of its citizenry lives outside its borders, meaning hundreds of thousands occasionally need to transfer money to the Asian nation, find out more with MoneyTransfers.com. Whether you’re an investment banker working in London or a yoga instructor in Taiwan, at some point, you may need to send money back home to your family or investment purposes.
Regardless of your reason for sending money to Asia, it pays to carefully review your options, including the right platforms, best rates, and transaction speeds to ensure that you put every coin in your possession to good use especially during these trying times.
We’ve compiled some crucial dos and don’ts to help you choose the right platform for your money transfer needs.
Do
Set out your expectations: When sending money to an Asian destination, such as the Philippines, you want to make sure you’re going for a remittance service that matches your requirements. An example would be settling for a platform that allows for money transfers through banks or online agencies and international chequing services. And if you don’t have enough funds in your account, you want a service that will allow you to use your credit card to transfer funds. If you’re looking to have the same day cash transfer, you may opt for an online service.
But if security is your biggest concern, you may want to opt for a bank transfer. With multiple options to choose from, it remains paramount to identify a service that will guarantee the safety of your money.
Make comparisons: Be sure to compare fees, exchange rates, transaction speeds, and more. International transfer costs are mainly composed of FX rates and remittance fees, making them deal-breakers when it comes to evaluating service providers.
If you’re transacting a large amount, a tiny difference in cost will result in a big variation in the final charges. You can find one-stop online tools for comparing exchange rates, transacting fees, processing times, plus a few other dealbreakers.
Compare what truly matters: For you to consider a remittance service, always evaluate them based on security, transaction speeds, and involved charges. While evaluating these platforms requires a bit of time, you eventually end up with decent savings while ensuring that your money reaches the recipient on time.
So whether you’ll be sending money back home to China or the Philippines regularly or occasionally, ensure you single out platforms that you can trust to deliver your money fast and for less.
Don’t
Not managing expectations: Different modes of transferring money will result in varied processing times. When wiring money to the world’s largest continent, it may not be possible for the recipient to receive funds within the same day. But while bank wires tend to take more transaction times, they are among the best and safest ways of sending money to Asia.
Ignoring the essence of window shopping: Money transfer services will offer a range of perks to customers to sustain the ever-growing competition in the fintech sector. The burden of choice is normally borne by the consumers. You want to avoid choosing a tool simply because it offers low transaction fees as they may end up charging you higher hidden charges, raising your ultimate remittance fees.
Not using secure devices: Unless you’re going to walk into a financial institution and have them initiate funds transfer to China for you, you’ll most likely use a laptop or your smartphone to transact. A 2020 Global Economic Crime and Fraud Survey by PWC indicates that over the last 24 months alone, an estimated £33.9 billion ($42B) has been lost to financial fraud globally, and the numbers get worse by the minute.
When sending money abroad, avoid using desktops, tablets, or smartphones with weak security controls. First off, the device should be free from virus attacks, and secondly, the installed antivirus should be running on its latest version. You should also avoid using public networks to transact, that applies to free wifi for customers inside bank premises.
Bonus: Tips for recipients of cash in Asia
- So you’ve finally managed to send money to your family in the Philippines, and now it’s upon the recipient to collect it. To ensure all stays well, make sure they do the following:
- Keep secret codes, passwords, and other crucial details confidential
- Visit payment remittance agents in safe locations
- Avoid withdrawing large amounts in public
- Bring along a friend or family member for extra security
- Avoid carrying cash around for longer than necessary
- Secure the funds either in a bank account or a safe.
Featured Image credit: Pixabay
