Visa International and Maybank have launched card-to-card payment service Visa Money Transfer in Singapore, which will enable Singapore-based Maybank customers to transfer funds directly from their bank accounts to other Visa card accounts around the world.
The companies claim that the Maybank Visa Money Transfer service will offer a fast, convenient and secure remittance service that represents a more affordable option for customers than traditional services using telegraphic transfers and demand drafts, or those offered by international remittance companies.
It will enable Maybank customers to send funds from their Visa cards to other Visa cardholders around the world, although the service currently excludes money transfers to several countries, including the US, Israel, Colombia and North Korea.
Maybank customers can log in to www.maybank2.u.com.sg and transfer money from their Maybank Visa cards, savings or current accounts or CreditAble Personal Lines to the Visa cards of their chosen recipients. The funds are transmitted from Maybank through the Visa network to the recipient’s bank and credited to their Visa Debit or credit card.
Recipients can access these funds by using their Visa cards at any Visa merchant acceptance location around the world or through any of the Visa/Plus ATMs that offer cash access in local currency in more than 170 countries, instead of having to travel to a bank branch or agent location.
To kick off the service, Maybank is offering transfers to any Visa card issued in Malaysia, Philippines and Brunei at the promotional rate of S$1 per transfer, an 80% discount off the usual S$5 fee for these countries.