Investment from the world’s largest private sector development institution to expand Earthport’s global cross-border payments service infrastructure and drive financial inclusion in developing nations
Washington, DC, May 29, 2013
- IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, has agreed to invest $10 million in Earthport, a cross-border payments service provider. The funding will be used to expand Earthport’s presence and payments service infrastructure, particularly in developing countries. Through this investment, Earthport also becomes part of IFC’s extensive network which includes over 900 financial institutions, providing Earthport with access to potential partners and clients in key geographies.
Earthport’s innovative, entirely electronic account-to-account cross-border payments service facilitates a more transparent, lower cost payments infrastructure, suitable both for remittance and low value trade payments. Earthport’s service is supported by strong compliance processes, controls and a risk based analysis of clients. Through integration with Earthport’s services, banking and money transfer organisations are able to offer an increased range of international payments products to their customers.
The more widespread expansion of Earthport’s payments service into developing countries is expected to have three key benefits: it will greatly streamline and simplify sending cross-border remittances, making them more efficient and cost effective; it will improve international trading opportunities for SMEs in developing nations by removing the barriers that high costs and delays for traditional international payments create; and it will increase financial inclusion in developing nations.
In many developing nations, the annual level of international remittances from citizens working abroad can be between 7% and 35% of the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Much of this continues to be carried out via traditional methods, which can be both costly and cumbersome.
“Earthport’s technology cuts the costs and delays of international money transfers, facilitating trade for SMEs and remittances for migrant workers – key priorities for IFC in helping people in developing countries improve their lives,” said Vincent Gouarne, IFC Director for Infrastructure. “We look forward to partnering with Earthport in this next stage of growth to further spread their reach in emerging markets.”
Hank Uberoi, Executive Director of Earthport plc, commented, "This significant investment from the IFC represents a strong endorsement of our leading and innovative cross-border payments service. In addition to expanding our presence in emerging markets, Earthport will also become part of the IFC’s extensive network of financial institutions globally.
“We are very proud to be affiliated with the IFC through this investment, and are committed to building our scalability and network in such a way as to provide a tangible improvement to the daily lives of millions of people and businesses in the developing nations, for whom cross-border remittances are a major source of income. Earthport’s technology provides the ideal solution to improve efficiency of remittances and other global payments.”
About IFC
IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, is the largest global development institution focused exclusively on the private sector. IFC helps developing countries achieve sustainable growth by financing investment, mobilizing capital in international financial markets, and providing advisory services to businesses and governments. In FY12, IFC’s investments reached an all-time high of more than $20 billion, leveraging the power of the private sector to create jobs, spark innovation, and tackle the world’s most pressing development challenges. For more information, visit
www.ifc.org
.
Stay Connected
About Earthport
Earthport plc, a regulated
global financial services
organisation, specialises in the provision of a white label cross-border payments service.
Through its innovative payments framework, specifically designed for high volumes of low value cross-border payments, Earthport provides a cost-effective and transparent service for secure international payments. Earthport's clients include banks, foreign exchange businesses, money transfer organisations, payment aggregators and e-commerce businesses. Through Earthport's well-established payments infrastructure, clients can clear and settle payments directly to banked beneficiaries in over 50 countries.
The company is headquartered in London and is listed on the Alternative Investment Market (AIM) on the London Stock Exchange. It operates globally with additional regional offices in Dubai and New York. Earthport plc is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority under the Payment Service Regulations 2009 for the provision of payment services. To learn more, please visit
www.earthport.com
and follow us on Twitter
@Earthport
.
