Edtech firm ErudiFi sends, holds and receives USD, IDR and PHP easily through Wallex

Background

ErudiFi is a startup that innovates education financing to make studying affordable in Southeast Asia. Operating as Danacita in Indonesia and Bukas in the Philippines, they provide students a smarter way to pay for education and bring financial inclusion to underserved students across the region.

As a startup, ErudiFi raises capital from institutional lenders and venture capitalists (VCs) in USD. The funds are channelled to its operating subsidiaries in Indonesia and the Philippines, where transactions are made in the local currencies IDR and PHP.

ErudiFi uses Wallex to make cross-border transfers from Singapore to Indonesia and the Philippines for a range of currencies including USD, IDR and PHP.

The Challenge

• Bank rates are not as competitive
  Previously, ErudiFi used their bank provider to transfer money internally. However, they realised the rates offered were very high compared to the mid-market rate, which meant a lot more unnecessary costs.
  
• Slow communication via bank
  Setting up an account took relatively long. Moreover, each time ErudiFi wanted to make an international payment, ErudiFi needed to get a quote for a preferential rate from the Account Manager separately. Making one payment thus involved additional steps.
  
• Require a payments provider that is specialised in transferring Southeast Asian currencies internationally
  Wallex, as an Asian Corridor Specialist, became the preferred option with its specialty compared to other banking and payment alternatives.
  
• Require an all-in-one platform for international payments, including sending, holding and receiving money
  Other than payments, ErudiFi also uses Wallex to receive funds.

The Solution

• Wallex as an affordable alternative
  Wallex offers near mid-market rates and allows clients to customise their rates based on their business needs with a local dedicated Account Manager.
  
• Ease and simplicity for making international transactions
  On the Wallex platform, you can directly receive the quote for your rates and additional fees while making your international payment. This makes it easy and quick to complete international transactions as everything is submitted at the same time within the platform itself.
  
• A safe fintech alternative
  Often, the concern to use banking alternatives is due to the fact that they are less established and thus involve higher risk.
  
  For ErudiFi, Wallex holding a MAS license was “a stamp of approval that gave assurance”.  
  
• Ease of account setup
  “Setting up a Wallex account was a breeze.” Without compromising security and necessary checks, it was much simpler and faster to pass through Wallex’s compliance process compared to their previous bank provider.
  
• Convenience and prompt support when troubleshooting transaction issues
  Their local dedicated Account Manager from Wallex is “incredibly helpful” and goes out of the way to ensure they can successfully make the transaction they want - be it in overcoming payment limits or speed issues.

The Results

With Wallex, ErudiFi is saving cost and time through:

• Prompt support ensures payments get sent on time at favourable rates
• Efficient account setup allowed them to open their account x4 faster

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