Statistics from the Bank of Russia show that Russians are not only receiving more money from relatives abroad but are also sending more money out of the country. The majority of the transfers are going to Uzbekistan, Ukraine, and Tajikistan, which together received more than $606 million sent from Russia. With the details on how sending money is becoming ever cheaper and faster is Kommersant Bank correspondent Elena Kovaleva.
Emigree Billions
Statistics published by the Bank of Russia show that $1.29 billion was sent abroad from Russia in the second quarter of this year. Distant countries received only $128 million – the rest, $1.16 billion, was sent to countries of the CIS. Uzbekistan received the most ($210.1 million), followed by Ukraine ($209.6 million), Tajikistan ($187.4 million), Armenia ($128.7 million), and Moldova ($114.6 million). None of the rest of the former republics of the USSR, with the exception of Kyrgyzstan, which received $101.5 million, managed to hit the $100 million mark.
Market players are calling Russia a donor country, since the flow of money being transferred out of the country exceeds the amount flowing in: only $330.7 million was sent into the country in the second quarter of 2006. Of this, $191.6 million came from more distant countries, including America ($49.2 million), Germany ($16.2 million), and Italy ($12.9 million). The countries of the CIS together send $139.1 million to Russia.
Transfers "With Polish"
Money can be sent in Russia by any of 16 different transfer systems, as well as via the Russian Post. The systems can be divided into two main groups: international and Russian. The international group includes Western Union and MoneyGram, as well as Travelex and Ria Envia, which have limited service within Russia. The international systems have the advantage of simplicity and a widespread network of offices: having specified the country and town to which the money is being sent, the sender receives a code that, once it has been communicated to the recipient, allows the recipient to pick up the money at any Western Union or MoneyGram office within a few minutes. The sender pays for the service.
Moskomprivatbank vice president Vadim Kovalev notes, "if you want to send money to a far-off country, it is better to use an international transfer system, since they have the largest network of offices. But if you need to send money to the CIS, then it is better to use a local system, which will have lower tariffs." The differences in service charges for transfers using international versus local systems can be significant. For example, someone sending 2000 rubles through Western Union will pay 300 rubles, 15% of the transferred sum, while none of the other service providers would charge over 50 rubles (2.5%).
All of the international systems have sliding commission scales: the larger the sum of the transfer, the lower the commission. For a transfer of $500, Western Union takes $29 in commission (5.8%), MoneyGram – $28 (5.6%), and Travelex – $25 (5%). If the sum is larger than $3000, the commission is lower still: 3.6% at Western Union, 3.5% at MoneyGram, and 3.2% at Travelex. In any case, however, the cost of using an international service provider will be more than using a Russian provider.
Transfers, Russian-Style
If the recipient can afford to wait for a day or more, then a Russian money-transfer system might be the way to go. The cheapest offer is from UNIStream or Promsvyazbank, which can both send $3000 with a service charge of $30 (1% of the transfer amount). For the same transfer amount, the Russian companies Contact, Anelik, and STB-Express all charge a 3% commission. The main drawback of these systems is that they all require at least day to send the money, while the Russian Post takes three days.
Several Russian companies – Migom, Lider, PrivatMoney, and Blizko – offer online services. To use these services, however, the sender must know the full address to which the money is being sent, and the recipient can pick up the transfer only at the specified office, making transfers to distant countries difficult.
Russian companies also have the drawback that, as Travelex Money Transfer Company Deputy Director for Eastern Europe Sergey Kochergin notes, "[there is] an absence of a single standard of service...The main problem is that Russian systems are developing their networks primarily on the basis of partnership deals with other providers. After the Russian system accepts the transfer from the sender, it gives the transfer to a different system, which then carries responsibility for paying out the money. As a consequence, the client can run up against unexpected commissions (for example, for receiving the money or for returning it), and there is already no one to whom the client can complain."
However, the Russian systems are not taking such criticism lying down. Sergey Bludov, vice president of Russlavbank, which runs the Contact money-transfer system, blames the less-than-perfect reputation of the Russian systems on a handful of providers who do not fulfill their obligations to their customers and notes that his company offers a full service guarantee that extends to any dealings with Contact's partner providers.
When sending a transfer, both the sender and the recipient should remember that the payout will be in the currency of the country where the money is received, although in Russia and the CIS most money received from abroad is paid out in US dollars. However, all transactions within Russia must take place in rubles.
The maximum sum that can be transferred abroad in one day is $5000. This restriction does not apply to nonresidents, who can send any sum of money out of Russia. There is no limit on the amount that can be sent into Russia, though other countries have established such limits. In Ukraine, for example, a nonresident can receive only up to 50,000 hyrvnas (around $10,000) or the equivalent. Before sending a money transfer, it is imperative to clarify all restrictions beforehand.
|