U.S. Prepaid Card Issuer Markets To Asian Ex-Pats In Middle East

Prepaid card provider Krores Ltd. Tuesday launched a pair of remittance Visa and MasterCard prepaid cards designed for Middle East-based migrant workers who want to transfer funds to their families in India and the Philippines. Holders of the prepaid cards can use them to withdraw transferred funds at ATMs or to purchase goods at stores or online, Vineet Katial, Krores chairman and managing director, tells CardLine. Transfer fees will be lower than with traditional wire services, Katial says. He says the cards eliminate the need for funds recipients to visit a funds-transfer business to obtain remittances. "You have the availability of the money any time, anywhere," Katial says. The company has signed agreements with Ireland-based Exchange House Travellers Service partners in the Middle East and is seeking other partnerships, a statement says. Krores will launch the service in the United States in "about a month or so," Katial says. "In the U.S., [the service] will predominantly be used online," he says. "You can transfer money from a bank account onto a card that can be used in India." Katial attributes the concept for the service to his own troubles wiring funds to his family in India. "We started talking to various governments about [funds-transfer] regulations and found there was a way around the usual way of wiring money," he says. Ann Arbor, Mich.-based Krores also has offices in Ireland, India and Germany and plans to open one in Dubai to cover the Middle East.