Etisalat Money partners with Visa to enhance Etisalat Money international transfers for UAE customers through Visa Direct. The agreement will connect Etisalat Money’s digital financial services with Visa Direct, Visa’s global money movement platform.
The planned additions include transfers directly to eligible payment cards, phone-number-based payments between supported digital apps, personal-to-business transfers, and SWIFT transfers. The partnership was signed at Visa’s Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa headquarters in Dubai Internet City. No launch date for the four new capabilities was announced.
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Expanding Etisalat Money International Transfers
Together, the options are intended to give customers more choice over how funds reach recipients, depending on their payment method and destination. The partnership expands a service that already supports international transfers to more than 150 countries, with payouts available through bank accounts, digital wallets, and cash pickup.
The app also provides live exchange rates, estimated transfer times, and transaction tracking, helping customers monitor transfers from initiation to completion. The initial focus will include key remittance destinations such as India, Egypt, Pakistan, Bangladesh, the Philippines, the United Kingdom, and China, alongside eligible digital-wallet destinations in multiple markets.
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Strategic Fintech Integration
For customers, the intended benefit is a broader selection of payout methods within one app, rather than having to choose a separate service for each transfer type. Visa Direct connects participating financial institutions and payment providers to a network that supports money movement to eligible cards and other endpoints.
For Etisalat Money, the partnership creates a way to expand its cross-border offering using Visa’s existing infrastructure. For Visa, it extends the reach of its money movement capabilities through a digital financial services platform serving consumers and businesses in the UAE.
Melike Kara Tanrikulu, CEO of Etisalat Money, said the partnership would broaden the company’s international payment capabilities as customer needs evolve. Fadi Moukaddem, Visa’s senior vice president and group country manager for the UAE, Kuwait, and Qatar, said the collaboration would give consumers and businesses greater choice in sending and receiving international payments.
Why it Matters to UAE Fintechs
The partnership reflects a broader shift in digital payments: customers increasingly expect to send money through different channels without having to navigate separate services for cards, bank accounts, and digital wallets.
For fintech providers, partnerships with established payment networks can expand available destinations and payout methods without requiring them to build every connection independently. The next milestone will be rolling out the four planned capabilities. Their availability across the announced corridors, along with transfer costs, processing times, and supported recipient services, will determine how much additional flexibility customers gain in practice.
Engagement
