Remittances

In July 2021, ANZ customers in Australia and New Zealand sent 11,668 International Money Transfers to family and friends in the Pacific, worth AUD$ $13.1m (US$9.6 million), a 21 percent increase in volume when compared to the same period last year.

“In the Pacific, international money transfers - also known as remittances - are about more than money: they are about family, safety, culture, and community,” ANZ Regional Executive, Pacific, Tessa Price said.

A key focus has been their collective effort to develop a regional ‘Know Your Customer’ (KYC) facility. The central banks, with support from the International Monetary Fund and other international agencies, have successfully completed an initial phase of work on a KYC facility for the South Pacific region.

It has been estimated that the pandemic will cause a 20% decline in the amount of remittances sent by migrants back home to low- and middle-income countries. This is due to loss of wages and employment by migrants alongside restrictions placed on remittances providers during lockdown.