LuLu Financial Holdings, an Abu Dhabi-based holding company investing in financial services, has partnered with NPCI International Payments Limited (NIPL) to offer consumers real-time remittances to India.
The partnership will enable LuLu Financial Holdings to connect to United Payments Interface, India’s real-time payments system, through its affiliates and offer remittances to beneficiaries who use UPI-powered apps, the company said in statement said on Wednesday.
NIPL is a subsidiary of the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), the country's umbrella organisation for retail payments.
“We are excited to partner with NIPL towards creating robust cross-border remittance solutions built on the strength of the UPI platform,” Adeeb Ahamed, managing director of LuLu Financial Holdings, said.
Money exchange services providers are increasingly offering instant remittance options to cater to customers who now rely on the convenience, speed and safety of digital remittance channels to send money home rather than visit physical branches for fear of contracting the coronavirus.
In July, Al Fardan Exchange partnered with Dubai digital banking start-up Jingle Pay to offer instant remittances. The alliance is aimed at customers aged under 40 seeking instant money transfer services. Similarly, Mashreq Bank tied up with India’s Federal Bank in May to offer customers a free money transfer service from the UAE to India through its digital QuickRemit platform.
Remittances are an important source of household income and foreign exchange inflows in India, with the country accounting for 33.6 per cent of all outward personal remittances from the UAE, according to the Central Bank of the UAE’s 2020 annual report.
“India is the largest recipient of cross-border remittances, receiving around $80 billion per annum,” Ritesh Shukla, chief executive of NIPL, said.
We are excited to partner with NIPL towards creating robust cross-border remittance solutions built on the strength of the UPI platform
Adeeb Ahamed,
managing director, LuLu Financial Holdings
“This partnership with LuLu Financial Holdings is aimed at enabling seamless and convenient cross-border remittance experience through the UPI platform’s real-time capabilities,” he added.
The partnership will also assist with real-time validation of beneficiary names and compliance checks in a secure manner, the statement said.
NIPL was incorporated in April last year to deploy real-time payment system UPI and domestic card scheme RuPay outside India, according to the statement.
LuLu Financial Holdings’ affiliates include LuLu Forex and NBFC LuLu Financial Services in India, LuLu Exchange Company in Oman, LuLu Money in the Philippines and LuLu Financial Services in Hong Kong, among others, according to the company’s website.
Outward personal remittances from the UAE dropped by 5 per cent, or Dh8.3bn ($2.26bn), year-on-year in 2020, according to the Central Bank of the UAE’s annual report. Transfers through exchange houses fell by Dh18.1bn or 13.8 per cent, while outward remittances through banks increased by Dh9.8bn, or 28.8 per cent, the report said.
The UAE was the second-biggest market for outbound migrant remittances after the US in 2020, according to a study by Oxford Business Group and Al Fardan Exchange. In 2020, remittances by foreign workers in the UAE totalled $43bn.
Tales of Yusuf Tadros
Adel Esmat (translated by Mandy McClure)
Hoopoe
UAE v Gibraltar
What: International friendly
When: 7pm kick off
Where: Rugby Park, Dubai Sports City
Admission: Free
Online: The match will be broadcast live on Dubai Exiles’ Facebook page
UAE squad: Lucas Waddington (Dubai Exiles), Gio Fourie (Exiles), Craig Nutt (Abu Dhabi Harlequins), Phil Brady (Harlequins), Daniel Perry (Dubai Hurricanes), Esekaia Dranibota (Harlequins), Matt Mills (Exiles), Jaen Botes (Exiles), Kristian Stinson (Exiles), Murray Reason (Abu Dhabi Saracens), Dave Knight (Hurricanes), Ross Samson (Jebel Ali Dragons), DuRandt Gerber (Exiles), Saki Naisau (Dragons), Andrew Powell (Hurricanes), Emosi Vacanau (Harlequins), Niko Volavola (Dragons), Matt Richards (Dragons), Luke Stevenson (Harlequins), Josh Ives (Dubai Sports City Eagles), Sean Stevens (Saracens), Thinus Steyn (Exiles)
The British in India: Three Centuries of Ambition and Experience
by David Gilmour
Allen Lane
Januzaj's club record
Manchester United 50 appearances, 5 goals
Borussia Dortmund (loan) 6 appearances, 0 goals
Sunderland (loan) 25 appearances, 0 goals
F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
APPLE IPAD MINI (A17 PRO)
Display: 21cm Liquid Retina Display, 2266 x 1488, 326ppi, 500 nits
Chip: Apple A17 Pro, 6-core CPU, 5-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine
Storage: 128/256/512GB
Main camera: 12MP wide, f/1.8, digital zoom up to 5x, Smart HDR 4
Front camera: 12MP ultra-wide, f/2.4, Smart HDR 4, full-HD @ 25/30/60fps
Biometrics: Touch ID, Face ID
Colours: Blue, purple, space grey, starlight
In the box: iPad mini, USB-C cable, 20W USB-C power adapter
Price: From Dh2,099
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
Other acts on the Jazz Garden bill
Sharrie Williams
The American singer is hugely respected in blues circles due to her passionate vocals and songwriting. Born and raised in Michigan, Williams began recording and touring as a teenage gospel singer. Her career took off with the blues band The Wiseguys. Such was the acclaim of their live shows that they toured throughout Europe and in Africa. As a solo artist, Williams has also collaborated with the likes of the late Dizzy Gillespie, Van Morrison and Mavis Staples.
Lin Rountree
An accomplished smooth jazz artist who blends his chilled approach with R‘n’B. Trained at the Duke Ellington School of the Arts in Washington, DC, Rountree formed his own band in 2004. He has also recorded with the likes of Kem, Dwele and Conya Doss. He comes to Dubai on the back of his new single Pass The Groove, from his forthcoming 2018 album Stronger Still, which may follow his five previous solo albums in cracking the top 10 of the US jazz charts.
Anita Williams
Dubai-based singer Anita Williams will open the night with a set of covers and swing, jazz and blues standards that made her an in-demand singer across the emirate. The Irish singer has been performing in Dubai since 2008 at venues such as MusicHall and Voda Bar. Her Jazz Garden appearance is career highlight as she will use the event to perform the original song Big Blue Eyes, the single from her debut solo album, due for release soon.
Brief scores:
Manchester City 3
Bernardo Silva 16', Sterling 57', Gundogan 79'
Bournemouth 1
Wilson 44'
Man of the match: Leroy Sane (Manchester City)
