Ithmaar Bank,
a Bahrain-based Islamic retail bank, in collaboration with Mastercard,
announced the launch of a new service that allows Ithmaar Bank customers to
transfer money from Bahrain to various countries around the world almost
instantly.
The service,
called IthmaarSEND, is provided to customers directly from the Ithmaar Bank
eBanking platform. The service will offer customers a faster, simpler and more
secure way of transferring money abroad from almost anywhere in the world,
through mobile phones, tablets or any other internet-connected device.
IthmaarSEND
uses the Mastercard Send for Cross-Border money remittance platform, which
enables fast, secure international fund transfers to a variety of payout
methods. This provides customers new levels of choice, convenience, and
certainty by allowing them to transfer money to accounts, cards or mobile
wallets, with enhanced transparency. Mastercard’s platform plays a key role in
improving world-wide connectivity, by providing new and enhanced innovation
across the global digital ecosystem.
“The new
service offers our customers a dramatically faster alternative to transfer
money abroad,” said Ithmaar Bank Deputy Chief Executive Officer, Banking Group,
Abdul Hakeem Al Mutawa. “It also allows customers to know, in advance and
before executing the transaction, all associated costs including the currency
exchange rate,” he said.
“The
IthmaarSEND service was developed in direct response to our customers’ demands,
and underscores how seriously we take their feedback,” said Al Mutawa. “Ithmaar
Bank is committed to becoming one of the region’s premier retail banks and we
recognize that, to do so, we must listen closely to our customers and maintain
our focus on continually meeting and exceeding their expectations,” he said.
“This new
service, which is available exclusively for Ithmaar Bank customers, could help
change the way many people in Bahrain transfer money abroad, whether it’s
sending money to family back home, to children studying overseas, or to
transfer money on behalf of domestic helpers or other employees,” said Al
Mutawa. “The fact that the transfers happen almost instantly, and that the
service is available from within the eBanking platform, will make this service
a particularly appealing option for many,” he said.
“Consumers’
needs and expectations are rapidly changing as the world becomes increasingly
interconnected,” said Mastercard General Manager, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain,
J.K. Khalil. “It has become a priority for citizens in Bahrain to be able to
quickly and safely send money to friends and family across the globe. The
ability to make fast, frictionless, trackable cross-border transfers that could
be cashed out through many digital and physical channels is crucial to driving
digitization in the country, and we are delighted to partner with Ithmaar Bank
on this service.”
“This partnership
is another example of how Mastercard Send for Cross-Border is not only
supporting the transformation of Bahrain’s digital economy, but also providing
innovative solutions for customers and consumers all around the world, enabling
people and businesses to send and receive money how and where they want, with
certainty and predictability of when and how much will be received,” said Khalil.
IthmaarSEND currently
allows customers to transfer money in near real-time to India, Pakistan, the
Philippines and the United Kingdom. IthmaarSEND also allows customers to
quickly transfer money to most of Europe, including Austria, Belgium,
Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Latvia,
Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia
and Spain, with more countries expected to be added over time.
Send us your company’s news today and they could be featured on ABC’s Community News tommorow.