50% of Malaysians cite high costs of remittances a challenge during COVID-19

KUALA LUMPUR – A whopping 50% of Malaysians find the high cost associated with remittances to be a challenge, with almost half (48%) reducing the amount sent and more than one-third (35%) completely giving up on sending a remittance.

These findings were from a survey commissioned by the global technology company TransferWise to better understand how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected the remittance habits of those living in Malaysia.

The survey also revealed the four biggest challenges faced by Malaysians in the past 12 months:

The time needed for remittances to reach the intended recipients (57%)
Not being able to travel to a physical branch to make a remittance order (54%)
The time needed to set up their transfer (51%)
The high cost of remittances (50%)

Furthermore, with many Malaysians affected by the pandemic, this further highlights the growing need for consumers to have access to remittance services that are cheaper, faster and more convenient.

Instant and Convenient Transfers Lessen Anxiety

The speed of transfers is a key consideration for many Malaysian consumers, with 61% of those surveyed saying it was an important factor when choosing an online remittance service.

Another huge concern for 57% of Malaysians is the long time spent waiting for their overseas remittances to reach their intended recipient, the ability to track the status of their transfers in real-time, which they can do with TransferWise, would help to lessen their anxiety.

Fully-online Experience

With more than one-third (32%) of Malaysians opting to set up their remittance order in person at a bank, 54% of the survey respondents found not being able to visit a physical branch during the past 12 months a challenge due to the Movement Control Order (MCO) measure implemented.

The long time needed to set up their remittance order was also an issue for 51% of them.

TransferWise’s completely online remittance service should help with this, where customers can get verified and set up their transfer money quickly.

Low and Transparent Costings

37% of Malaysians said that cost and trust was an important factor when choosing a remittance provider, With four in 10 noticing an increase in the cost of sending remittances over the past year and half of them citing high costs as a challenge, it resulted in lesser amounts of remittances being sent by 48% of the survey respondents.