Mobile Domestic Money Transfer Market Could Grow 200 Percent by 2018

A recently published market study reveals that the amount of money sent between parties in mobile-based domestic money transfers is expected to reach $520 billion in two years.

Juniper Research’s study of the domestic money transfer market – “Digital Money Transfer & Remittances: Domestic & International Markets 2016-2021” – expects that this growth will ride on the wings of person-to-person (P2P) transfers and that, when compared with the value of all global transfers in 2015, the rise in value here will almost reach 200 percent growth. Mobile transactions in 2015 reached approximately $178 billion in 2015, said Juniper, and domestic P2P transfers should account for 45 percent of the whole by 2018.

Analysis from TMC shows that consumer wariness of trust in mobile money transfers may have waned from previous years. A separate citing of Juniper research, this time surveying mobile users in Germany, the U.K. and the U.S., found that 83 percent of consumers are now willing to transfer money overseas. Though that study focused on the transfer of money across countries’ borders, it suggests that trust in payment services has increased as a whole.

The former Juniper study also highlights users in developed nations, whereas the latest paper notes that domestic mobile money transfers tend to take place in developing nations. Juniper wrote that Africa and the Middle East showed their current hold of 235 million registered mobile money users, the largest share of the entire global market. What can be seen when comparing both studies is that users in more developed nations have shared their willingness to use mobile transfers outright; meanwhile, users in developing nations provide a more implicit display of willingness to use such services because of their overwhelming presence in the system.

Juniper’s survey of German, U.K. and U.S. residents earlier this year also provided useful information in that users were often dissatisfied with mobile transfers because of high subscription costs and slow transfer speeds. Juniper pointed out that many users were likely unaware of alternative services that could alleviate those perceived problems. The P2P applications noted in the most recent research presents dedicated apps such as Airtel Money, M-Pesa, MTN Mobile Money, and Orange Money as among the alternatives. Likewise, similar services attached to social media sites include the likes of Venmo and WeChat.

A wealth of alternatives for customers’ use is present; that enough is clear. The list of application providers may also increase with the spread of knowledge about this market’s potential, which is impressive and should attract a lot of attention in the years to come.