MAYBANK yesterday announced the launch of its Visa money transfer service in Singapore, the first payment service here that allows its customers to transfer money to almost any Visa credit and debit card holder around the world.

To transfer funds, Maybank customers need to log in to Maybank's Internet banking website. All they need is the recipient's Visa card number, and they can then proceed to transfer money from their Maybank Visa card or bank account.

The service does not require other credit card details such as the expiry date or the card verification code.

Maybank will then convert the currency at its foreign exchange rates, and release the funds via Visa's network to the recipient card issuing bank.

With the money in their card account, recipients can then draw the funds out via ATMs on the Visa/Plus network, or use the funds to pay their Visa credit or debit card bills.

Maybank expects this service to increase its online remittance transaction volume by 15 per cent.

At a press briefing yesterday, Angie Lee - head of Maybank Singapore's cards and payment services - said Maybank expects such transactions to take no more than five days.

The recipient could in fact receive the funds as fast as one working day, depending on the timeliness of the receiving bank, she said.

The transaction fee for this service is $8 per transfer for transfers to Visa cards issued in foreign countries. Transfers to Visa cards issued in Malaysia, Philippines and Brunei attract a lower $5 per transfer.

However, from now till the end of June, transfers to cards issued in these three countries will be at a promotional rate of $1 per transfer.

To enjoy the promotional rate, a minimum transfer of $500 must be transferred, otherwise the $5 charge will apply.

Maybank will treat transfers from a Maybank Visa card to another locally issued Visa card as a cash advance, and will charge its usual cash advance fee of $15 or 5 per cent of the transferred amount, whichever is higher, plus an interest of 24 per cent per annum on the transferred sum.

The transfers are subject to a maximum limit of $3,000 per transfer, and $3,000 per day. This daily limit can be increased to $10,000 per day, subject to the account holder's credit limit or available funds.

The Visa money transfer service is currently not offered to Visa cards issued in certain countries, namely the USA, Venezuela, Colombia, Nigeria, Myanmar, North Korea, Israel, Indonesia, the Balkans, Belarus, Congo, Cuba, Iran, Iraq, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Sudan, Syria and Zimbabwe.

Current ways of sending money to foreign accounts include telegraphic transfer, making a demand draft, or using remittance agents such as Western Union, which could cost upwards of $20 per transaction, depending on the transaction amount.

According to Vikram Modi, regional head of Visa International Asia Pacific's consumer-to-consumer and prepaid products business, its Visa money transfer service was first launched in December 2004, in India.

He explained that the initial focus was on India, as it is the world's largest remittance recipient country. The service was subsequently launched in Malaysia in August 2006, and as of yesterday, in Singapore.

Visa's money transfer service currently sees some 1,500 daily transactions in the region.

As at the end of last year, there were some 3.46 million Visa cards issued in Singapore, of which 2.66 million were credit cards, 680,000 were debit cards, and the remaining were largely corporate credit and debit cards.

This article first appeared in BT on April 19, 2007