Singapore’s Instarem sees huge inflow of diaspora remittances into India

Singapore: Singapore-headquartered Instarem sees huge inbound flow of remittances into India, citing the World Bank projection that money sent home by the Indian diaspora will reach USD 100 billion a year in the coming year or so, up from USD 82 billion received last year.

“India is a huge inbound market for us, and we have big operations in Mumbai, which is our main technology and product centre,” Yogesh Sangle, Global Head of Instarem, told PTI on Wednesday on the increase in monies sent home regularly by the Indian diaspora.

Instarem has also grown its offices in Bangalore and Chennai, to leverage the talent in India, said Sangle who pointed out that the estimated USD 82 billion received in India in 2022 was the largest remittance flow in the world.

The app-based remittance company is setting up operations in Japan to serve Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and Consumers, and has recently launched a SME-support product in Indonesia.

COVID-19 had created an opportunity to service the cash-strapped SMEs.

“COVID-19 was also an opportunity for app-based remittances as people were not able to go through the conventional banking transaction due to lockdown," said Sangle. “The app-based network has made it easier for remittances and its use is rapidly growing.” Sangle said Instarem, founded in Singapore by entrepreneurs with Indian-roots, has enjoyed strong growth of 30 per cent per annum from the global remittance market of USD 682 billion.

“Remittance market is big enough to support a lot more companies offering money transaction services. The world's top five companies have about 15 per cent of the global market share and it needs to be consolidated. There are a lot of opportunities,” Sangle said.

Instarem is continuously working on new products, as Sangle sees a lot more headroom for growth in the fragmented global remittance market.

Instarem, with over 130 employees in India, has market reach across 38 countries, mostly in developed economies and has developed a money transaction network across 170 markets.