Pakistan’s largest fintech organization JazzCash has announced a strategic partnership with du Pay, a financial services provider based in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), to simplify cross-border payments.
This means Pakistani expats in the UAE can now send direct remittances using du Pay wallets to their families in Pakistan through JazzCash. The UAE ranks as the second-largest contributor of remittances to Pakistan, following Saudi Arabia, with a substantial $548 million transferred in March alone.
The memorandum of understanding (MoU) marks the first-ever partnership between a Pakistani fintech entity and UAE’s du Pay.
“JazzCash becomes the first fintech in Pakistan to strategically partner with du Pay to simplify cross-border payments,” Murtaza Ali, Head of JazzCash, said. “People from UAE can now send direct remittance using du Pay wallets to their families in Pakistan through JazzCash. With Pakistani expatriates in the UAE being the second-largest contributors to remittances, this integration couldn’t have come at a better time,” he added.
As a leading player in Pakistan’s fintech realm, JazzCash has an impressive customer base of 44 million and 22 million active app users. Supported by a vast network of 240,000 agents (who facilitate people in sending money securely) and over 300,000 merchants, JazzCash is at the forefront of driving financial inclusion and digitalization in the South Asian country of 241 million.
Simplifying remittance and payments from UAE to Pakistan
The primary objective of this partnership is to streamline the process of transferring funds from the UAE to Pakistan, facilitating the remittances from the large Pakistani expatriate community in the Gulf nation.
Aamir Ibrahim, CEO of Jazz (Amsterdam-headquartered digital company Veon), the parent company of JazzCash, emphasized the importance of these remittances for Pakistan’s economic stability and restated the commitment to leveraging technology for financial inclusion.
“Our partnership with du Pay simplifies payments for Pakistanis everywhere, emphasizing our role in boosting economic growth,” Ibrahim said. “Remittances from our expatriates are vital, sustaining households and powering our economy. This collaboration helps ensure that these contributions have a lasting impact on Pakistan’s economic stability,” he added.
Fahad Al Hassawi, CEO of du, expressed confidence in the partnership and emphasized that the collaboration would result in a simplified and secure digital service, promoting financial inclusion and positively impacting the lives of Pakistani nationals.
Du Pay, launched in April 2024 by UAE telecom giant du (Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Company), aims to facilitate the transition of the UAE towards a cashless and digital economy.
Licensed by the UAE Central Bank, du offers a wide range of services, including international money transfers, mobile top-ups, bill payments, salary deposits via an IBAN, and more. The partnership between JazzCash and du Pay signifies a strategic alliance aimed at exploring new avenues of cooperation, such as expanding JazzCash’s presence in UAE markets.
What is Remittance and why is it important for Pakistan?
Remittances are typically transfers or earnings that migrants send to their families in their home countries.
Pakistani diaspora, dispersed globally, contributes significantly to the nation’s economy through the remittances they send home. Key source countries of remittance inflows to Pakistan include Saudi Arabia, UAE, the UK, the U.S., Oman, Qatar, Italy, Kuwait, and Australia.
Pakistan ranks sixth worldwide for remittance inflows, amounting to USD 24 billion in 2023, according to a report by the World Bank’s KNOMAD.
As digitalization speeds up and mobile usage grows, remittance payments are shifting to digital channels. Cross-border remittances through digital wallets offer businesses and individuals, whether banked or unbanked, a transparent, cost-effective, and quicker way to transfer money.