InstaReM, an international remittance payments start-up, is looking to hire in India
The firm plans to hire across all key functions including Compliance, Customer Service, Sales & Marketing, Finance and Human Resources at its Mumbai office
InstaReM (short for Instant Remittances) is a Singapore-headquartered FinTech company that provides fast, secure and cost-effective digital cross-border money transfer services for individuals and businesses.
The company has been on a high growth trajectory since inception in 2015. Key milestones have been:
v In January 2015, InstaReM raised seed funding of US$500,000 from Rocket Internet.
v In March 2016, InstaReM successfully raised a USD$5 million in Series A round, led by Vertex Ventures, with participation from Fullerton Financial Holdings and Global Founders Capital.
v In July 2017, InstaReM received another US$13 million investment in Series B funding, led by GSR Ventures, with participation from SBI-FMO Emerging Asia Financial Sector Fund, Vertex Ventures, Fullerton Financial Holdings, and Global Founders Capital.
Currently, InstaReM is licensed to initiate money transfers from Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, and Singapore – which means businesses and individuals in these four markets are able to remit money to over 50 countries worldwide. Having set its foot in these markets, InstaReM is close to acquiring Money Transfer Service licenses in other countries Asia, Europe, and North America. While headquartered in Singapore to leverage the favorable environment for FinTech start-ups, InstaReM operates largely out of India with key functions handled from its Mumbai office.
Initially, InstaReM set up its India office in 2015, a 3,000 square feet facility in Mumbai’s Saki Naka area. However, with the staff strength multiplying manifold following two rounds of funding, InstaReM has already shortlisted another office space – a swankier one – which is double the size of its current office.
“We are looking to hire at least 200 more people in our India office this year,” says Prajit Nanu, 33, the Mumbai-bred co-founder of InstaReM. At a time when traditional firms are scaling down and most start-ups cautious about ramping up, InstaReM’s hiring plans reflect the promoters’ optimism in the business opportunity and their business model. “Cross-border remittance is a huge market and the services of traditional players like the Money Transfer Operators and Banks are little too expensive. By leveraging technology and our relationships with banks in the destination countries, InstaReM is able to provide the same service – faster and safer – at a fraction of traditional players’ costs. We are ramping up to manage the future growth that is expected to come from InstaReM’s disruptive model and our entry in the newer markets,” says Prajit.
InstaReM’s is eyeing new hiring across all functions including Compliance, Customer Service, Sales & Marketing, Finance and Human Resources.
Senior professionals from with 15-17 years of experience in Banking, International Marketing, Finance, and Compliance are already a part of this high-growth company. The workplace is exciting as InstaReM is already disrupting the traditional way of enabling remittances. Here’s how:
- Transparency & Competitive transaction fee: InstaReM charges transaction fees of 0.25%-0.5% for overseas money transfers, compared to the usual transfer fee plus FX spread (the difference between the interbank currency conversion rate and the rate quoted by the bank or money transfer company) charged by the traditional players.
- The speed of transaction: InstaReM is able to transfer fundswithin 24 hoursin Asia, compared to the average two to four days transfer by the traditional money transfer players.
For the last six months, the World Bank has consistently ranked InstaReM as the most competitive remittance platform in a number of Asian corridors including, Australia to India, Malaysia, Philippines and Vietnam as well as from Singapore to Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, and Sri Lanka.