InstaReM and IIT Alumni Association Sets Up Fund For Indian Migrant Workers in Singapore

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3 years ago

Qualified migrant workers who are remitting funds back to India through the InstaReM platforms shall be eligible to add SGD 20 (approximately INR 1,000) from the Fund to remittance.

SINGAPORE, 2 July 2020 – InstaReM, the consumer and SME brand under global financial technology platform Nium, and the Indian Institute of Technology Alumni Association Singapore (IITAAS) announced today the establishment of a new Fund of SGD 20,000 that will support migrant workers in Singapore who are sending money to India. Each qualified [1] Indian migrant worker [2], who is working in Singapore, and whose remittance is submitted through the InstaReM platforms to their beneficiaries back home shall receive an additional one-time disbursement of SGD 20 (approximately INR 1,000) via a voucher code.

The announcement comes as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to impact millions of lives and threaten business communities around the globe. Migrant workers in Singapore, especially, have been highly impacted. Though most workers have been given the go-ahead to return to work earlier in June, many of them are relocated to short-term accommodations and must undergo a series of systematic and regular testing as well as enhanced health surveillance. Workers are not prepared for the “new normal”, and many of them are facing difficulties conducting their usual activities, including remitting money back home for family maintenance, children’s education, hospital bills etc. Even as some employers of these workers have quickly pivoted from doling out cash salary to adopting digital money transfers, the amount of money being sent back home has dropped due to challenges in construction business for example. The Fund is set up in hopes to support some of the losses faced by the workers during these times.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has brought about unprecedented challenges for both people and society – from threatening our physical health to the health of economies around the world. As we navigate through this evolving situation, we wanted to look at how we can support the migrant workers in Singapore who have been highly impacted by this pandemic. We hope that the additional contribution from the fund with IIT Alumni Singapore can help these migrant workers in their monetary situation back home, so they can focus more on their health here,” said Yogesh Sangle, Global Head of Consumer Business, Nium.

To qualify for the one-time disbursement of SGD 20 (~INR 1,000), migrant workers will need to submit their work permit for validation checks. Once approved [3], they will receive the one-time SGD 20 voucher code to be included in their remittance transfers conducted on InstaReM’s platforms.

“IIT Alumni in Singapore have always stood at the forefront, supporting affected people through crisis and calamity. Singapore’s IIT Alumni community is the largest outside India and the United States. We have decided to contribute a sizeable portion of our reserves to the needy migrant workers to support their families back home. The partnership with Nium will help us to deliver the funds both directly and quickly to the affected communities”, said Avish Joseph, President, IIT Alumni Association, Singapore.

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About Nium

Nium is a global financial technology platform redefining the way consumers and businesses send, spend and receive funds across borders. The company is continuously innovating to provide the most relevant and agile solutions to meet the needs of consumers and businesses, having evolved from solely focusing on consumer remittance via InstaReM, to also providing fintech solutions for businesses. Nium is regulated in Australia, Canada, European Union, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore and the United States of America, and processes billions of dollars a year for banks and payments institutions, the next generation of e-commerce players, OTAs and retail users across the world. Nium’s investors include Visa, BRI Ventures, Vertex Ventures, Vertex Growth, Fullerton Financial Holdings, GSR Ventures, Rocket Internet, Global Founders Capital, SBI Japan, FMO (Netherlands Development Finance Company), MDI Ventures, Beacon Venture Capital and Atinum Investment.

Media Contacts:

Gillian Loo

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[1] To be assessed by Nium and IIT Alumni Association.

[2] One-time disbursement for each qualified worker only, subject to availability of the fund.

[3] Approvals take up to 48 hours.