By Felixberto Tero II
Do you often send money to recipients from anywhere in Mindanao or even elsewhere in the Philippines? Most likely you have a child or a relative studying at a university in another province or city. If not, then probably you’re engaged in a small or medium sized enterprise that requires you to transfer funds every now and then. I bet you’ve used every known means of fund transfer available in your locality, but in case you haven’t got a clue about the different channels available, allow me to give you a bird’s eye view of the various remittance outlets in Mindanao.
There are a number of conventional channels you can use to send money locally. While international money transfer service providers turn over a remarkable volume of remittances each day from OFWs to local beneficiaries, there is also a substantial demand for domestic remittance services that has stimulated competition, in terms of fees and promos, among providers. Below is a rundown of the players in the domestic remittance industry:
Money Transfer Companies
Of course you’ve heard about Western Union, right? Lately, this global remittance company has been extensively marketing its domestic remittance services here in the Philippines through paid TV and print ads; promos on fees, membership cards and even giving free SMS load to recipients. You may also have noticed that Western Union is establishing more independent WU outlets, to lie low on partnerships with banks and pawnshops.
Domestic Couriers
Local fund transfer is an incidental service of couriers such as LBC and Aboitiz Express. They provide quick and reliable fund transfer services to and from as many cities and municipalities in Mindanao within their reach, and many of us have been patronizing this channel for many years.
Local Banks
Want your recipient to receive remittance funds real-time and real fast? This is possible by way of inter-branch fund transfers (you’re transferring funds through the same bank but to a different deposit account) or inter-bank fund transfer (this time funds are transferred to a deposit account held in another bank). It is typical for entrepreneurs operating in countryside Mindanao to channel fund transfer transactions with local rural banks that likewise have branches in commercial centers, where buyers and distributors are based.
Pawnshops
Pawnbrokers have expanded their service lines to engage in domestic fund transfer as well. A widely distributed network of pawn outlets located in both urban centers and rural regions of Mindanao makes pawnshops an ideal remittance channel. Minimum fees are as low as P20 to step up a few pesos depending on the amount of transfer and the location of the recipient. Pera Padala and ML Kwarta Padala are popular domestic remittance brands operated by leading pawnshops.
Mobile Fund Transfers
At the height of the electronic reloading station hype, fund transfers via mobile phones likewise emerged to offer an instant, all-electronic and affordable means of fund transfer. Globe Telecoms introduced the electronic wallet concept behind G-Cash into the mainstream while Smart Communications launched Smart Padala which featured international fund transfer capabilities as well. Nevertheless, this mode of fund transfer proved to be useful to electronic load distributors as a payment facility for their various retailers based in remote Mindanao municipalities.
To this day, informal channels for local fund transfers still exist in the rural mainstream. For a typical city dweller, it would come as a surprise to learn that rural folks actually send money through the conductor or ticket handler of a small time public utility bus or van operator. You might want to try informal channels, for adventure’s sake that is. But then again, I wouldn’t want you to risk even a few hundred pesos for that matter.
So the next time you need to send money to anybody or anywhere else in countryside Mindanao, simply browse through the abovementioned options. I’m sure there’s one service provider to match your fund transfer requirements and preferences.
