TIGEREUM

Instant messaging is even outstripping the new social media tools which put Facebook, Google and Amazon on the map ten years ago. Instant messaging is becoming more popular than the generation of social media apps we all first came to use, and this change is occurring right now. The social media companies are having to re-invent themselves already. Because of these trends, and the possibility of skimming a large number of small fees across global banking transactions (a market worth over US$400 trillion per year in international remittances alone) it is easy to see why social media companies are working on how to make payments work on their instant messaging platforms. International Remitters International remitters (of fiat currencies) are very relevant to this market analysis, and Tigereum. The key international remitters are Western Union, MoneyGram, and Transferwise. Paypal is not regarded as a traditional international remitter, but it rates a mention here too. Primary customer-facing tools for international remitters are local branches and agents dispensing cash. Western Union has over 500,000 branches and agents around the world. Where they do employ technology they are, in the main, still using only web browsers, SMS and mobile apps, which are clunky to use. International remitters are expensive, and part of the centralized financial ecosystem which represents fiat currencies, central banking and burdensome regulations. In fact, rather than develop their own solutions for messaging international remittances, it looks like their preferred strategy is to partner up with the social media companies to deliver the systems, compliance and back-end banking for messaging money on instant messaging platforms.