Mobile Remittances: $55 Billion in 2016, or More?

Nearly $55 billion in international remittances will be sent using or received on mobile devices in 2016, up from less than $12 billion this year, Juniper Research now predicts.


Growth is currently being led by mobile remittances sent across established migration corridors such as the United States and Mexico, as well as intra-regional transfers across Africa and the Middle East, as migrant workers send money back home from foreign countries.

Mobile remittance forecast by Celent

However, substantial inter-regional and intra-regional activity from and within Western Europe will see this region account for the largest remittance volumes by the end of the forecast period. $55 billion in mobile remittances by 2016


In 2008, Celent estimated that remittances were sent by some 150 million people on a regular basis. By 2050, the number of immigrants worldwide is expected to increase to 280 million, leading to greater remittance volumes and transactions.

In 2006, formal and informal remittances were estimated to be around $450 billion, Celent estimated at the time. Big remittance market 

One of the big issues is how much share mobile remittances can take of the total remittance market.