RIYADH: Tahweel Al-Rajhi, the oldest player in the remittance business of Saudi Arabia, serving customers for more than 40 years, and Habib Bank Ltd, the largest Pakistani bank, have joined forces and launched a remittance product called "HBL Fast Cash" here on Tuesday.
The free-of-charge Fast Cash, which ensures instant transfer of funds to the beneficiaries in Pakistan, requires no bank account for either the remitter or the beneficiary.
Hazem Elhagrasey, head of Tahweel Al-Rajhi, announced the launch of the new service at a press conference.
"The new service will assure that the beneficiaries will receive payments in cash within minutes in Pakistan," said Elhagrasey.
Zahid Raza Khan, counselor at the Pakistan Embassy, and Tariq Matin Khan, HBL's general manager for financial institutions and international banking, were present at the news briefing.
Elhagrasey said up to PKR500,000 could be sent from Saudi Arabia to any HBL branch in Pakistan through the program. "The beneficiary will receive an SMS alert for collection at no additional cost," he said.
Matin Khan said the HBL with over 1,450 branches is the largest bank in Pakistan with a domestic market share of over 40 percent.
"The remitters can benefit from the huge HBL network to send money to any nook or corner of Pakistan," he said. "Fast Cash is offered to customers free of charge as part of the State Bank of Pakistan's program to reward customers who send money via banking channels."
The beneficiary's name should be the same as the one on their Pakistani ID card to facilitate easy delivery.
Both Khan and Elhagrasey emphasized that strong measures are in place as per guidelines of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) to check money laundering and terror funding.
The HBL general manager said about SR6 billion is annually transferred from Saudi Arabia to Pakistan. "Our aim is to grab a bigger share of this market, particularly by reducing the volume of funds sent through illegal channels," said Khan, adding that the Pakistan government has also launched an ambitious program called Pakistani Remittance Initiative to curb illegal money transfers.
By GHAZANFAR ALI KHAN
© Arab News 2010
