MoneyMatch is a cross-border transfer service that helps small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Malaysia pay their global suppliers. As the country’s traditional financial institutions were charging high FX rates on the smaller volume transactions typically requested by SMEs and individuals, MoneyMatch partnered with Ripple to offer cheaper and faster payments to more than 120 countries around the world.

“Banks typically focus on larger customers who are sending higher volume transactions and can afford higher fees,” said MoneyMatch CEO and Co-founder, Adrian Yap. “SMEs don’t have much choice other than to accept these same rates, which adds to the cost of dealing with foreign suppliers. We worked with Ripple to create an improved cross-border payment process that offers these customers better rates and faster transaction times.”

Yap first became aware of this significant gap in the market while working in treasury roles at some of Malaysia’s biggest financial institutions. Not only did he see how banks prioritized the needs of enterprise customers over SMEs, he knew that they were generating a lot of revenue from high-cost FX transactions.

“All the banks charged the same fees,” explained Yap. “They were happy simply generating these revenues instead of trying to increase market share by reducing rates. We believed that offering lower prices and a simpler way to send money abroad would really benefit SME customers and allow us to capture this valuable market. Our challenge was that we were a small start-up from Malaysia, which is not a top-of-mind market for the rest of the world. We needed to develop relationships with banks and payment providers all over the world but didn’t have the required credibility or transaction volumes.”

Building Credibility With Partners and Customers

MoneyMatch overcame this challenge by becoming part of RippleNet, which gave the company fast and easy access to hundreds of global partners. With everyone plugged into the same network, the company cut integration and operational costs, allowing to provide a faster and more affordable service to customers. RippleNet partnerships also helped MoneyMatch offer same-day settlement times.

“After joining RippleNet, we were suddenly a credible partner for all these financial institutions and payment providers around the world,” recalled Yap. “A RippleNet introduction is more like a hug than a handshake. We struggled to find a decent European partner and were stuck using the SWIFT system to make payments there. Working with RippleNet partners allowed us to cut our costs by as much as 40% and instead of transactions taking at least two days, we were completing payments in just a few hours.”

Despite developing a cost-effective cross-border payments process, MoneyMatch still had to convince customers to trust the company with their money instead of the traditionally reliable, if expensive, banks.

“SMEs are rightly cautious with their money,” said Yap. “Gaining their trust quickly was not something we could hack – you have to earn it. We saw businesses start with lower value transactions. Once we had their trust and they saw how much they were saving, these customers began making 4-5 larger payments with us every month. Over time, they also appreciate the benefits of same-day settlements, from helping with cash flow management to getting better terms from suppliers.”

Creating More Customer Benefits With RippleNet

MoneyMatch aims to continue to use RippleNet to open up new markets and create more benefits for its customers.

“We are always thinking about how we can serve our customers better. That’s why we’re looking to develop partnerships on RippleNet that will help us build more payment and collection facilities on a global scale. We want to match the ambitions of our SME customers and be the kind of growth partner that they won’t find at any of Malaysia’s traditional banks.”

If you’re interested in learning how RippleNet can help better serve your customers, contact us.