Visa Remit! launch will allow ADIB clients in the UAE to seamlessly send and receive instant cross-border fund transfers.
Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (ADIB) has launched Visa’s real-time cross-border money transfer service, Remit!, becoming the first financial institution in the UAE to leverage the offering.
The new service allows ADIB customers to send money instantly to eligible Visa cards, digital wallets, and bank accounts in over 180 countries via both online and mobile channels. It is powered by Visa Direct – Visa’s real-time payment platform that enables money transfers to reach recipients within a short time, ranging from a few seconds to up to 30 minutes. Senders can use just the Visa card number or digital wallet/mobile identifier, without needing full account or IBAN details, which can simplify the remittance process as well.
The importance of convenient and fast remittance solutions is critical in the UAE, where 95% of consumers send money abroad with an average frequency of 1,4 times per month. According to a Visa report, over a third of those surveyed face problems like high fees and having to visit a physical location to send money cross-border.
The move is part of ADIB’s broader digital transformation efforts. Thus, the institution has been investing heavily in improving its mobile banking experience, expanding its cloud infrastructure and advanced cybersecurity frameworks, deploying automation and AI across various processes, exploring blockchain technology, and adopting API-based systems to integrate with third-party platforms like Visa Direct.
The ADIB Remit! launch follows similar rollouts of another cross-border payment service – Visa+, which allows institutional transfers using mobile numbers or email addresses instead of card or account details, by banks in the UAE, Qatar, and Bahrain. The increased adoption of real-time cross-border payment infrastructure across key GCC corridors signals that local customers want faster and more accessible international remittance options.
