What is the best dataset available on global remittance flows and average remittance costs?
Cross-Border Payments
Asked by Question Bot06/Feb/20151 answer
1 Answer
F
Faisal Khan
Answered 06/Feb/2015
There is no accurate or centralized source to tap into something like this. The World Bank, Remittance Group has been pursuing this agenda with many countries, to obtain more granular data, but the sheer magnitude of something like this data gathering is not possible.
For starters, each country's regulator themselves are not compiling data in such granular format. The banks and MTOs have the data, but it is being consolidated into currency types and countries only. They are not providing the regulators with data such as:
The World Bank has suggested to make a universal template and data exchange protocol standard for obtaining such data on a daily basis from all the regulators, but there has been stiff resistance on the basis of privacy, etc.
In so far as I can tell, nothing is in the works at present for the next 2-3 years that would make WB Remittance Group publish more granular data. Your best bet is to look at the major corridors, and hope you are able to extract such data from the regulators of these corridors (which itself is difficult), considering Bangladesh, India and Pakistan do not wish to give more granular data than they already are. Nigeria, Philippines and the GCC Countries too have cited the same - that granular data is not needed.
For starters, each country's regulator themselves are not compiling data in such granular format. The banks and MTOs have the data, but it is being consolidated into currency types and countries only. They are not providing the regulators with data such as:
- Tie-up partner who sent the remittances
- Whether the on-boarding of the remittance was online, mobile, payroll card, cash, walk-in, etc.
- Cost of the remittance
The World Bank has suggested to make a universal template and data exchange protocol standard for obtaining such data on a daily basis from all the regulators, but there has been stiff resistance on the basis of privacy, etc.
In so far as I can tell, nothing is in the works at present for the next 2-3 years that would make WB Remittance Group publish more granular data. Your best bet is to look at the major corridors, and hope you are able to extract such data from the regulators of these corridors (which itself is difficult), considering Bangladesh, India and Pakistan do not wish to give more granular data than they already are. Nigeria, Philippines and the GCC Countries too have cited the same - that granular data is not needed.