Money transfer company Al Fardan Exchange is teaming up with US blockchain technology company Ripple to offer instant cross-border payments as exchange houses increasingly join forces with FinTechs to capture new customers and scale up their business offerings.
The partnership will allow Al Fardan's customers to remit money internationally in real time, the company said on Tuesday.
Al Fardan will join Ripple’s cloud-based global financial network, RippleNet Cloud, which allows financial institutions to move away from ageing and expensive legacy infrastructure and adopt the flexibility, speed and resilience of cloud computing without the burden of hardware management, it said.
“We are well into a digital future and payments powered by technology, which is becoming key in the region,” said Hasan Al Fardan, chief executive of Al Fardan Exchange.
“This partnership underscores our commitment to offer new channels and opportunities for people to remit money more securely, with more flexibility and convenience.”
Money exchange providers are increasingly partnering with FinTechs to cater to customers who now rely on the convenience of mobile apps to send money home rather than visit physical branches.
Remittances to poor and middle-income countries are projected to have grown 7.3 per cent to $589 billion in 2021, the World Bank said in November.
In GCC countries, the recovery of outward remittances was boosted by stronger oil prices and the resulting pick-up in economic activity, the Washington-based lender said at the time. Remittance flows increased by 9.7 per cent in the Mena region.
Remittances are projected to continue to grow by 2.6 per cent in 2022, according to the World Bank.
Meanwhile, outward personal remittances from the UAE increased 8.7 per cent, or by Dh3.6bn a year, in the second quarter of 2021, according to the Central Bank of the UAE.
Outward remittances through banks rose by Dh6.1bn while transfers through exchange houses dropped by Dh2.5bn.
“We are proud to partner … to leverage blockchain technology to revolutionise cross-border payments and the thriving payments industry in the UAE and the Middle East,” said Navin Gupta, managing director of RippleNet, South Asia and Mena.
The partnership will allow more customers to benefit from instant cross-border money transfer services through Al Fardan Exchange’s touchpoints, the company said.
“We will continue to tie up with FinTechs that offer inroads into brand new customer segments as we see our global processing and clearing capabilities allied with digital technologies, which will … lead to financial inclusion. We see this trend continuing as the UAE is positioning itself as a FinTech hub in the region,” Mr Al Fardan told The National in an interview in December.
The Way It Was: My Life with Frank Sinatra by Eliot Weisman and Jennifer Valoppi
Hachette Books
MATCH INFO
Arsenal 1 (Aubameyang 12’) Liverpool 1 (Minamino 73’)
Arsenal win 5-4 on penalties
Man of the Match: Ainsley Maitland-Niles (Arsenal)
Specs%3A%202024%20McLaren%20Artura%20Spider
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Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
Pathaan
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'Joker'
Directed by: Todd Phillips
Starring: Joaquin Phoenix
Rating: Five out of five stars
Our Time Has Come
Alyssa Ayres, Oxford University Press
The Birkin bag is made by Hermès.
It is named after actress and singer Jane Birkin
Noone from Hermès will go on record to say how much a new Birkin costs, how long one would have to wait to get one, and how many bags are actually made each year.
UK-EU trade at a glance
EU fishing vessels guaranteed access to UK waters for 12 years
Co-operation on security initiatives and procurement of defence products
Youth experience scheme to work, study or volunteer in UK and EU countries
Smoother border management with use of e-gates
Cutting red tape on import and export of food
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Crops that could be introduced to the UAE
1: Quinoa
2. Bathua
3. Amaranth
4. Pearl and finger millet
5. Sorghum
The biog
Age: 23
Occupation: Founder of the Studio, formerly an analyst at Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi
Education: Bachelor of science in industrial engineering
Favourite hobby: playing the piano
Favourite quote: "There is a key to every door and a dawn to every dark night"
Family: Married and with a daughter
THE SPECS
Engine: Four-cylinder 2.5-litre
Transmission: Seven-speed auto
Power: 165hp
Torque: 241Nm
Price: Dh99,900 to Dh134,000
On sale: now
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
2018 ICC World Twenty20 Asian Western Sub Regional Qualifier
Event info: The tournament in Kuwait this month is the first phase of the qualifying process for sides from Asia for the 2020 World T20 in Australia. The UAE must finish within the top three teams out of the six at the competition to advance to the Asia regional finals. Success at regional finals would mean progression to the World T20 Qualifier.
UAE’s fixtures: Fri Apr 20, UAE v Qatar; Sat Apr 21, UAE v Saudi Arabia; Mon Apr 23, UAE v Bahrain; Tue Apr 24, UAE v Maldives; Thu Apr 26, UAE v Kuwait
World T20 2020 Qualifying process:
- Sixteen teams will play at the World T20 in two years’ time.
- Australia have already qualified as hosts
- Nine places are available to the top nine ranked sides in the ICC’s T20i standings, not including Australia, on Dec 31, 2018.
- The final six teams will be decided by a 14-team World T20 Qualifier.
World T20 standings: 1 Pakistan; 2 Australia; 3 India; 4 New Zealand; 5 England; 6 South Africa; 7 West Indies; 8 Sri Lanka; 9 Afghanistan; 10 Bangladesh; 11 Scotland; 12 Zimbabwe; 13 UAE; 14 Netherlands; 15 Hong Kong; 16 Papua New Guinea; 17 Oman; 18 Ireland
BUNDESLIGA FIXTURES
Saturday
Borussia Dortmund v Eintracht Frankfurt (5.30pm kick-off UAE)
Bayer Leverkusen v Schalke (5.30pm)
Wolfsburg v Cologne (5.30pm)
Mainz v Arminia Bielefeld (5.30pm)
Augsburg v Hoffenheim (5.30pm)
RB Leipzig v Bayern Munich (8.30pm)
Borussia Monchengladbach v Freiburg (10.30pm)
Sunday
VfB Stuttgart v Werder Bremen (5.30pm)
Union Berlin v Hertha Berlin (8pm)
Most sought after workplace benefits in the UAE
- Flexible work arrangements
- Pension support
- Mental well-being assistance
- Insurance coverage for optical, dental, alternative medicine, cancer screening
- Financial well-being incentives
More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
If you go
The flights
There are direct flights from Dubai to Sofia with FlyDubai (www.flydubai.com) and Wizz Air (www.wizzair.com), from Dh1,164 and Dh822 return including taxes, respectively.
The trip
Plovdiv is 150km from Sofia, with an hourly bus service taking around 2 hours and costing $16 (Dh58). The Rhodopes can be reached from Sofia in between 2-4hours.
The trip was organised by Bulguides (www.bulguides.com), which organises guided trips throughout Bulgaria. Guiding, accommodation, food and transfers from Plovdiv to the mountains and back costs around 170 USD for a four-day, three-night trip.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
