Personal Features

InstaReM

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50

InstaReM provides reliable international money transfers services for personal customers from several countries.

What InstaReM does

  • International money transfers.
  • Cash pick-up in the Philippines.
  • Multi-currency travel cards.

What InstaReM doesn’t do

  • Regular transfers.
  • Digital wallets.
  • Personal account managers.
  • Hedging tools.
  • Cash pick-up, other than the Philippines.

ERemit

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Malaysia-based eRemit gives individuals from the country an easy means to carry out international money transfers.
 

What eRemit offers

  • International money transfers.
  • Cash pickup (in some countries).
  • Transfers to Alipay and UnionPay cards in China.

What eRemit doesn’t offer

  • Regular transfers.
  • Account managers.
  • Digital wallets.
  • Personal travel cards.

InstaReM wins!

InstaReM scores better in the Personal Features category.

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Winner

Business Benefits

InstaReM

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Small and mid-sized businesses may benefit by using InstaReM's services.

What InstaReM business account offers

  • Company-branded travel cards.
  • Multi-currency accounts.
  • Batch payments.
  • Higher send limits than personal accounts.

What InstaReM business account doesn’t offer

  • Hedging tools.
  • Digital wallets.
  • Accounting integration.
  • Online seller solutions.
  • Business specialists.

ERemit

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eRemit provides rather basic services for business customers.
 

What eRemit business account offers

  • International money transfers.
  • Same-day delivery of funds in some countries.
  • Higher daily transfer limit than personal customers.

What eRemit business account doesn’t offer

  • Currency hedging tools.
  • Accounting integration.
  • Online seller solutions.
  • FX-optimized travel cards.
  • Multi-currency accounts.
  • Digital wallets.
  • Currency specialists.

InstaReM wins!

InstaReM scores better in the Business Benefits category.

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Winner

Fees & Exchange Rates

InstaReM

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InstaReM fees

The transfer fee you need to pay depends on the currencies being traded, the transfer amount and the mode of payment.

  • Transfer fees increase in direct proportion to increases in transfer amounts.
  • Debit card payments come with higher fees than bank account transfers.

InstaReM exchange rates

InstaReM uses Reuter market rates to process transfers and adds an FX margin that is typically below 1%. This essentially depends on the currencies being traded.


ERemit

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eRemit Rates

eRemit exchange rates come with margins/markups that the company adds on top of existing mid-market rates. The markup can be over 2% for some currencies.
 

eRemit Service Charge

Additional eRemit fees depend on the destination country, the payout method and the transfer amount. You find out how much you need to pay as the eRemit service charge in advance.


InstaReM wins!

InstaReM scores better in the Fees and Exchange Rates category.

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Winner

Ease of Use

InstaReM

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What InstaReM does well

Signing up

Create a new account easily by using the InstaReM app or website.

Payment options

  • Bank account transfers from all countries.
  • ACH Pull payments from the USA.
  • Debit card payments from the European Union and the UK.
  • POLi payments from Australia.
  • FPX payments from Malaysia.

Mobile app

Available for iOS and Android.
 

Where InstaReM could improve

Speed - Some InstaReM reviews on Trustpilot suggest that transfers can take longer than the stipulated 1 - 2 business days.

Limits - Minimum transfer limits vary based on the sender's location. Maximum transfer limits vary depending on where the sender and recipient live. 

Phone transfers - You can not carry out transfers over the phone as a personal customer.


ERemit

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Signing up

You can sign up using the eRemit website or eRemit app. While creating a new account is simple, the verification process might take some time.
 

Payment options 

Make payments via FPX (direct deduction from your bank account) or by using your Merchantrade Money Prepaid Visa Card.
 

Sending limits 

Face-to-face document verification

  • Personal customers can carry out up to 15 transactions in a 30-day period.
  • They can transfer up to RM 50,000 per day.
  • The FPX maximum limit per transaction is RM 20,000 per day.

Online document verification

  • Malaysian citizens and expatriates can transfer a maximum of RM 30,000 per day.
  • Migrant workers can transfer up to RM 5,000 within 30 days from their last visit to their home country.

Business customers

Business customers can carry out transfers of up to RM 10 million per day.
 

Transfer speed 

Bank account transfers to most countries go through in 1 - 2 business days. Transfers to cash pickup locations can go through almost immediately.
 

eRemit app

eRemit provides apps for Android and Apple. eRemit reviews on Google Play Store have largely positive things to say about the app's usability, although a few customers highlight problems surrounding the app not working with particular devices. There are few eRemit reviews on the Apple App Store.


InstaReM wins!

InstaReM scores better in the Ease of Use category.

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Winner

Support & Countries

InstaReM

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What InstaReM does well

Supported destination countries - InstaReM lets you send money to a number of countries across North America, Europe, Asia and Oceania. However, the list of supported destination countries might vary based on the sender's location.
 

Where InstaReM could improve

Supported registration countries - InstaReM currently accepts customers from the US, Canada, the UK, Euro Zone countries, Australia, Hong Kong, India, Malaysia and Singapore.


ERemit

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Supported registration countries - eRemit accepts customers only from Malaysia.

Supported destination countries - Lets you send money to more than 200 countries.

Supported countries for cash transfers - Philippines, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Nepal, Myanmar and Vietnam.

Customer service - Provided over the phone and via email.


InstaReM wins!

InstaReM scores better in the Support and Countries category.

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Winner

Trust & Transparency

InstaReM

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What InstaReM does well

Regulated - InstaReM Pte. Ltd. (now known as NIUM Pte. Ltd.) is licensed by regulatory bodies of different countries.

Safety of funds - Uses segregated bank accounts to hold client money.

Trustpilot - Rating of Excellent.
 

Where InstaReM could improve

Transparency - Unless you carry out research on your own, you won't find out how much you pay as exchange rate margins.

Addressing customer concerns - A reasonable number of InstaRem reviews on Trustpilot and Google Play Store complain about delayed transfers and poor customer service.


ERemit

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Licensed - Merchantrade Asia Sdn. Bhd. owns and operates eRemit. Merchantrade has a license to operate as a money services business in Malaysia.

eRemit reviews - There are just around 25 eRemit reviews on Trustpilot. With a score of 9.4 out of 10, the company rates as Excellent. eRemit also rates well on the Google Play Store, averaging at 4.4 out of 5, with over 1,800 reviews. However, some concerns raised by customers on this platform are left unanswered by eRemit.


ERemit wins!

InstaReM scores better in the Trust and Transparency category.

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Winner

The Result

Winner ribbon iconWinner

 InstaReM

With a tie across InstaReM and eRemit's individual services the race is on against the other scoring categories.  InstaReM has taken out all the categories except for Trust and Transparency.  The stand out wins are within their business services and also their cheaper fees and exchange rates,