Digital money transfer platforms like Remitly make sending money abroad鈥攖o support family, run a business or top up a wallet while travelling鈥攎ore secure, affordable and efficient than traditional methods.
Digital money transfer platforms like Remitly make sending money abroad鈥攖o support family, run a business or top up a wallet while travelling鈥攎ore secure, affordable and efficient than traditional methods.
Trust in international money transfers has long been tied to physical places: a bank branch, a post office, a money transfer store. The ability to speak with someone in person and leave with a printed receipt can make the transaction feel more secure. But that familiarity often comes with long lines, fewer payment options and currencies, high fees, inconvenient operating hours, slow delivery times and limited visibility into where the money is.
At the same time, people鈥檚 reasons for sending money abroad are expanding. Beyond supporting family back home, cross-border payments today can span tuition fees, topping up local wallets when travelling and business transactions.
That鈥檚 why, for a growing number of Canadians and businesses, that traditional model no longer fits. 鈥淔or people sending money home regularly, friction points like cost, speed and transparency add up,鈥 says Jung Lee, Canada General Manager at Remitly, a global cross-border financial service.
To meet these evolving needs, digital money transfer platforms have emerged as a modern solution. Over the past decade and more, these providers have built global payment infrastructure that links banks, mobile wallets and cash pickup locations around the world. In Remitly鈥檚 case, serving millions of Canadians offering a platform powered by a network that includes over 5,500 corridors鈥攖ransfer routes between countries鈥攕panning 100+ currencies across 175+ countries.
鈥淒igital cross-border payment providers like Remitly are providing customers options and innovation in the financial sector鈥攂ringing down costs and increasing transaction speed,鈥 says Lee. She adds that Remitly can also be used for larger transfers, supporting cross-border needs for individuals and entrepreneurs, such as paying for overseas services or tuition.[1]
[1] Sending limits vary by country, delivery method, and FX rates. Banking partner requirements and additional documentation may apply
Built-in legitimacy and trust
Still, Lee understands the trust gap. 鈥淲e鈥檙e talking about moving someone鈥檚 hard-earned money across borders to people they care about, often in regions where a failed or delayed transfer has real consequences,鈥 she says. 鈥淧eople worry about whether the company is legitimate, whether their financial data is secure and whether the money will actually arrive where and when it鈥檚 supposed to.鈥
What helps reassure Remitly鈥檚 customers is its established roots built on local partnerships and global payments infrastructure. Founded in Seattle in 2011 and publicly traded on Nasdaq, the company in Q1 2026 served more than nine million active customers and processed an estimated more than US$80-billion in send volume in the past 12 months. Remitly also opened its first Canadian post in Vancouver in 2024 to go deeper in Canada, hiring and investing here.
In addition, Lee notes that Remitly is registered as a payment service provider with the Bank of Canada under the Retail Payments Activities Act (RPAA), bringing institutional accountability behind the product. 鈥淚t signals that the business has been vetted, there are rules it has to play by and there鈥檚 recourse if something goes wrong,鈥 says Lee.
How digital money transfers work
Even when people are assured of the legitimacy of digital money transfer services, there is a learning curve for some users. They may assume the process is complicated or that if something goes amiss, there鈥檚 no one to call for assistance. Remitly鈥檚 process is designed to be straightforward and transparent from the outset.
At a basic level, users set up an account on the app, select where they鈥檙e sending money and choose the amount, payment method and delivery method. The exchange rate, fees and delivery time are all shown upfront before the transfer is confirmed.
For Canadian senders, payments can be processed through Interac e-Transfer, bank accounts, debit cards, credit cards and digital wallets. Recipients can receive funds through bank deposits, mobile wallets or cash pickup locations.
Remitly offers worry-free transfers with 24/7 multilingual support, including French, so when you send money from Canada, you鈥檒l be cared for every step of the way. 鈥淭his removes a lot of the anxiety around whether it will work,鈥 says Lee.
On the security side, Remitly uses transaction monitoring and other controls designed to help detect and prevent suspected fraud and scams. 鈥淔or most people, that combination is what makes taking the first step feel a lot less daunting,鈥 Lee says.
While the experience takes place on an easy-to-use app, transfers rely on a much larger global payment network working behind the scenes.
鈥淩emitly is a network, not simply an app,鈥 says Lee. 鈥淚n a sense, we act as a connective tissue between banks globally鈥攖he way major credit card networks connect issuers and merchants globally鈥攂ut we鈥檙e purpose-built for cross-border transfers.鈥
Looking ahead, Lee says digital money transfers will continue to be shaped by faster speeds, lower costs and rising expectations.
鈥淭he people sending money internationally today manage their whole financial lives on a phone, and they expect money movement to match,鈥 she says. 鈥淭he companies that will lead aren鈥檛 just those with the best technology. They鈥檙e the ones that have earned real trust in the communities they serve on both ends of the transfer.鈥
