Remittances: Harnessing the $1 Trillion Remittance Market to Accelerate Access to Inclusive Finance

It is estimated that the money international migrants send home annually exceeds US$1 trillion (including informal transfers) and is significantly higher than overseas development assistance and foreign direct investment received by nearly all developing countries. Previously ignored or misunderstood, nations are beginning to recognize the significant benefits that remittances can bring to their economies and how they can be a catalyst for greater financial inclusion.  

The workshop will cover the following issues:

• • Background on remittances and trends in the Asia and the Pacific.
• • Opportunities to leverage remittances with a view on the financial inclusion agenda.
• • Remittance challenges and how to overcome them through improved data and harnessing technology.
• • The vital and enabling role of financial service regulators to encourage remittance competition and create proportionate regulation and coherent policy development.