An Analysis of Financial Technology's Impact on Money Transfer

This report explores the transformative impact of financial technology (FinTech) on the money transfer sector. It begins with an introduction to FinTech, defining its role in reshaping financial services and examining its background and research rationale. The report investigates the shift from traditional money transfer methods to online systems, analyzing their effectiveness, implementation in financial institutions, and the effects of FinTech on the industry. The study employs a mixed-methods research approach, including literature review, data collection, and analysis to understand the challenges faced by traditional institutions and the advantages of adopting FinTech. The report highlights the increasing acceptance of online money transfer and FinTech services, evaluating their impact and addressing research questions related to FinTech services, the differences between traditional and online systems, and the overall impact of implementing financial technologies. The report aims to understand the impact of FinTech on online money transfer, and how financial technologies are aligning with the growing needs and preferences of consumers. The research methodology includes type of investigation, research approach, research framework, data collection process, sampling, ethical considerations, limitations, and time frame. The report concludes with a detailed analysis of the findings and recommendations for future research.

Running head: IMPACTS OF FINANCIAL TECHNOLOGY OVER MONEY TRANSFER
IMPACTS OF FINANCIAL TECHNOLOGY OVER MONEY TRANSFER
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

1IMPACT OF FINANCIAL TECHNOLOGY ON ONLINE MONEY TRANSFER
Table of Contents
Chapter 1: Introduction..............................................................................................................3
1.1 Introduction......................................................................................................................3
1.2 Background of the study..................................................................................................3
1.3 Research rationale............................................................................................................4
1.3.1 What is the issue?......................................................................................................4
1.3.2 Why is it an issue?.....................................................................................................4
1.3.3 What could the research shed light on?.....................................................................5
1.4 Research aim....................................................................................................................5
1.5 Research objectives..........................................................................................................5
1.6 Research questions...........................................................................................................6
1.7 Personal learning objectives.............................................................................................6
Chapter: 2 Literature review......................................................................................................7
2.1 Concept of financial technology......................................................................................7
2.2 Traditional money transfer vs. Online money transfer....................................................7
2.3 Effectiveness of online money transfer............................................................................8
2.4 Implementation of the technology in the financial institutions........................................9
2.5 The effect of the financial technologies.........................................................................10
2.6 Current statistics of fintech............................................................................................11
2.7 Literature gap.................................................................................................................11
Chapter 3: Research and Methodology....................................................................................11
3.1 Type of investigation......................................................................................................11

2IMPACT OF FINANCIAL TECHNOLOGY ON ONLINE MONEY TRANSFER
3.2 Research approach.........................................................................................................12
3.3 Research framework.......................................................................................................13
3.4 Data collection process..................................................................................................14
3.5 Sampling and sample size..............................................................................................14
3.6 Ethical consideration......................................................................................................15
3.7 Limitations of the research.............................................................................................15
3.8 Time frame.....................................................................................................................15
References................................................................................................................................17
Appendix..................................................................................................................................20
1.0 Gantt chart......................................................................................................................20
2.0 Questionnaires................................................................................................................20

3IMPACT OF FINANCIAL TECHNOLOGY ON ONLINE MONEY TRANSFER
Chapter 1: Introduction
1.1 Introduction
The recent era has experienced a lot of changes in the field of technology and it has
been changing every moment. There are lot of innovations that are taking place as we are
proceeding further. The personal life of every individuals are largely dependent on the
technology that has been designed and developed by the people itself. Technology has
affected people’s lives in several positive as well as negative ways. It has changed the way
the people are communicating, socialising, learning, developing, travelling, purchasing,
selling and most importantly the way they are living (Laudon and Traver 2016). The demand
of the people and their life style have changed so much that now a days the people demand
for real time services and solutions. The financial transaction have faced the same
advancements. Individuals want to make fast and real time transactions siting back at home
without facing the hassles of the traditional methods. The research proposal deals with such
impacts of the financial technology on the online transfer sector.
1.2 Background of the study
The term Fintech refers to the automation and improvement in the ways the financial
services are delivered and catered to the users of financial services (Chishti and Barberis
2016). Fintech is disrupting the world of finance in numerous effective as well as ineffective
ways. Fintech was previously used in the functions of the back office tasks that allowed it to
leverage the tasks of handling of bank personnel accounts, transaction execution, customer
database management and many such tasks. The present market scenario integrates the
concept of Fintech with all kind of functions that the financial institutions perform. The PwC
Global Financial Survey of 2017 clearly shows the percentage of industrial sectors who
believe in the growth of the Fintech companies – E-retailers 43%, ICT and other large tech

4IMPACT OF FINANCIAL TECHNOLOGY ON ONLINE MONEY TRANSFER
companies 50%, Social Media 55%, Start-ups 75%, Financial Infrastructure Companies 41%
and Traditional Financial Institutions 28% (Nicoletti and Weis 2017) (PwC, 2019). Financial
institutions are experiencing a boost in their revenues because of collaborating with fintech
companies. One of the biggest impacts that fintech has wrought is that it has enabled
traditional brick and mortar institutions to expand online through technology and
consequently improve their bottom line figure through overhead cost savings. In line with this
trend, most of the money transfer institutions have shifted from the high street brick and
mortar presence to e-money transfer technology. Consequently, this has helped in cost
reduction of these companies thereafter improving their overall profitability.
1.3 Research rationale
1.3.1 What is the issue?
The financial technology sector has several influences on the money transfer
institutions. Most money transfer institutions that have collaborated with fintech companies
are having an advantage over those who have not collaborated. The e-money transfer system
has facilitated a boost in the turnover of most of the companies (Kashyap and Weber 2016).
The pivotal research issues are:
 What challenges are being faced by those money transfer institutions that
continue to avoid adopting Fintech?
 What role in improving profitability is Fintech playing for the money transfer
institutions who are utilising the opportunity?
1.3.2 Why is it an issue?
To understand the impact of Fintech on online money transfer business, one has to
explore any reluctances and concerns surrounding fintech and the internet. Most financial
institutions avoid adopting online technologies because of the negative impacts associated

5IMPACT OF FINANCIAL TECHNOLOGY ON ONLINE MONEY TRANSFER
with it. This fear of utilising the internet based platforms (and associated risks) for a money
transfer system acts as hindrances for most financial institutions who are not exploiting
Fintech opportunities (Caruana 2016). These organisations are therefore losing their
competitive advantage compared to the online money transfer business who have adopted
Fintech solutions to tap into global markets in a borderless manner. As a knock on effect,
profitability of those brick and mortar organisations are also in decline as they struggle to
maintain profit margins in a highly competitive market.
1.3.3 What could the research shed light on?
The research hopes to examine both the positive and negative effects of using
financial technologies in the money transfer system. As an exploratory piece, this research
will explore the linkage between fintech industry and money transfer services. The challenges
faced by the traditional money transfer institutions are also discussed along with
recommendations on how these challenges can be addressed and mitigated.
1.4 Research aim
The financial technology have both positive and negative impacts on the online
transfer system. The aims of this research study are:
 To understand the impact of the financial technology over online money transfer.
 To understand how the financial technologies are aligning itself with the growing
needs and preferences of the consumers.
1.5 Research objectives
The research objectives of the study are stated as below:
 To critically understand the concept of Financial Technology or the Fintech services.
 To critically understand the concept of traditional and online money transfer.
 To understand the challenges faced by the traditional money transfer institutions.

6IMPACT OF FINANCIAL TECHNOLOGY ON ONLINE MONEY TRANSFER
 To evaluate and assess the impact of financial technologies over the money transfer
system.
 To understand why the online money transfer and Fintech concept is becoming
popular in the current scenario.
1.6 Research questions
The research questions are as stated below:
 What are Fintech services?
 What are the basic differences between the online money transfer and the traditional
money transfer system?
 What are the impacts of implementing financial technologies in the money transfer
system?
 Why is there an increased acceptance of the online money transfer and other online
financial services?
1.7 Personal learning objectives
 Evaluation of the effectiveness of financial technologies and statistical analysis will
help in increasing the skills.
 Detailed concepts of fintech and modern payment system will help in knowledge
acquisition.
 Skills of communicating with people can be obtained while doing the survey.
 The overall concepts gathered will help in the career growth.

7IMPACT OF FINANCIAL TECHNOLOGY ON ONLINE MONEY TRANSFER
Chapter: 2 Literature review
2.1 Concept of financial technology
Fintech (abbreviated term for Financial Technology) is one of the hottest term in
banking, insurance and the financial services sector. It is that category of technology that is
reshaping the activities and performance of financial services over and above the level of
traditional banking services (Lee and Shin 2018). It refers to the innovation in financial
services by Fintech innovating consumer savings, ease of borrowing and lending, and
improving the ease and efficiency of transferring money. As a result of these innovations,
growth in the Fintech industry has become quite visible. It provides liquidity by the
identification of uninformed order (Farboodi and Veldkamp 2017).Driven by consumers’
needs of fast, flexible, and efficient solutions, Fintech companies have delivered and
facilitated the concept of online transactions. Various robust business models have been
introduced by these Fintech companies through implementation of sound digital technologies
and CRM software, which has helped transform the financial service landscape and reduce
operational costs of financial institutions (He et al. 2017). Fintech, as a concept, has replaced
manual operational processes with automated online applications and software. In reality, it
has caused a revolution in operational models of online money transfer institutions.
2.2 Traditional money transfer vs. Online money transfer
Money has been changing hands historically, from wire transfers to the introduction
of Western Union. Money transfer can be done in various ways which involves interbank
money transfers, international and cross border bank transfers, electricity bill payments,
mobile money top up and many other forms.
The traditional money transfer system involves methods like demand drafts, manager
cheques, cheque transfers, money orders and inadvertently money transfer agents. These

8IMPACT OF FINANCIAL TECHNOLOGY ON ONLINE MONEY TRANSFER
traditional transfer processes involve several verification processes. The accounts of all the
parties involved in the transaction are verified and thereafter the transaction is processed and
it takes time for the complete processing. Sometimes the transfer takes few weeks to reach to
the transfer (Field et al. 2017).
Online money transfer is an important innovation in technological sector where
customers can transfer money from one account to other accounts or from banks to banks
without being physically present at banks. Moreover this procedure also helps in transfer of
money on same day, which is not possible in the traditional system. Easy online setup is
required and thereafter the transfer can be processed on a real-time basis. Secure transaction
through television can be done easily via a TV network (Low, Mody and PayPal Inc., 2017).
The bank account details and the personal information is required to be feeded online just for
once and then one can make several transaction one after the other hassle-free. The online
service providers compete with each other and therefore in most of the cases zero processing
fees are charged for transferring the money. All the updates related to the transactions are
received through mails and SMSs.
2.3 Effectiveness of online money transfer
Online money transfer is capturing the global market rapidly. Most of the consumers
are switching from the traditional concept of the money transfer to the online money transfer.
The reason for such a step is because of the effectiveness and the efficiency of the online
transfers. The online transfers are hassle-free and takes place as soon as the transaction is
made (Khan et al. 2017). Unlike the traditional money transfer process, the online money
transfer does not take much time in transferring the money to the beneficiary. The online
money market charges the minimum and most of the time takes zero charges for the transfer
services. The money can be send by the individuals themselves without taking help of the
banking personnel. The transactions can be done from home or any place and physical

9IMPACT OF FINANCIAL TECHNOLOGY ON ONLINE MONEY TRANSFER
presence in the financial institutions at the time of the transfer is not required. The
applications and the software designed for the transfer system is very user friendly. The
service providers can also be specialists in dealing with currency exchange and hence can
offer competitive rate as compared to the high street banks. The offers displayed on the
windows are easily accessible by the consumers and hence the consumers easily get attracted
to such offers (Upadhyay and Jahanyan 2016). The customer service is available 24 x 7
unlike the high street financial institutions. The applications store the transaction history of
the respective accounts. This increased effectiveness attracts all of the customers in choosing
the online money transfer system over the traditional system.
2.4 Implementation of the technology in the financial institutions
Computers, laptops and smart phones have become a part of our daily life. It can be
seen that now a day almost most of the houses are having a computer and a smart phone with
high speed internet connectivity. These technologies are very helpful for the collection,
interpretation and manipulation of a large number of data. The financial organisations are
therefore trying to use these technologies and reduce their operational cost while aiming for
increasing the operational efficiency. The financial organisations are collaborating with the
financial technology companies in order to implement these technologies and provide a
competitive service. The financial technology companies are developing software that is
secured (Integrated, Availability, Confidential and Authorization) and safe to use
(Puschmann 2017).
The concept of cloud computing has enabled the financial service providers to focus
on the customer centric approaches and to digitalize the transactions and wealth. The cloud
services help in the storing, backups and recovery of a large number of information and data
of the organisation (Zhang et al. 2018). It also helps in the accessibility of such data from any
place and the transfer of such data at any time. The ever growing data inputs in the financial

10IMPACT OF FINANCIAL TECHNOLOGY ON ONLINE MONEY TRANSFER
institution is being supported by the cloud services as a large number of data can be securely
maintained. The using of the cloud services has helped in the reduction of the CAPEX and
the OPEX of several financial institutions.
The top online money transfer companies in United Kingdom are currently
TransferWise, Azimo, WorldRemit, TransferGo, Billon, Revolut and Covercy. Companies
like WorldRemit has adopted the online solutions in order to compete with the ever
increasing financial demands of the consumers as well as to face the market competition.
Most of these companies use the Amazon Web Services, Oracle Cloud, Microsoft Azure,
Google Virtual Cloud, IBM Bluemix and many such cloud services. These transfer institutes
provide 24/7 support, competitive and affordable rates and safe and secured transactions
(Goeppinger and PayPal Inc. 2018). The usage of these services are helping in the reduction
of the cost of operations as well as the managerial costs. Several strategic decisions can be
therefore managed by implementing these technologies in order to cope up with the changes
in the technologies and the increasing changes in the demand of the consumers.
2.5 The effect of the financial technologies
The implementation of the Fintech services have provided with hassle-free customer
services. The innovation related to the Chatbots have replaced humans and are providing
prompt services to the customers (Zalan and Toufaily 2017). The customers can access their
accounts from any place and check the amount of bank balance in the account. The customer
does not need to visit the bank, update the pass book and then make transactions anymore.
The customer can access the balance and can easily transfer the money through the
application just by one click. Any fraudulent transaction can be now detected because of the
improvement in the machine learning and the artificial intelligence. The security system in
the transfer system has also improved. The applications and the money transfer software
designed for the smart phones now use the biometrics for signing in the accounts (Gomber et

11IMPACT OF FINANCIAL TECHNOLOGY ON ONLINE MONEY TRANSFER
al. 2018). The traditional financial institutions are facing a huge pressure in the market as
people are not using the traditional services anymore.
2.6 Current statistics of fintech
The research and innovation partnering rate is approximately 45%. The global
investment in the Fintech companies is around $8.2 billion. 54% of the banking sector have
already partnered with the Fintech companies and the banking service sector has received
41% of the total global Fintech funding. 42% of the payment companies have partnered with
the Fintech companies. Almost 93% of the businesses now use the cloud based services. The
disrupted parts of the financial sector by Fintech are – Consumer banking 72%, Fund transfer
and payments 54%, Commercial banking 35%, Insurance 25%, Wealth management 36%,
Brokerage services 19% , Insurance intermediary 16%, Market operators and exchanges 12%
and Fund operators 9% (Haddad and Hornuf 2016), (Futures 2019).
2.7 Literature gap
In this research the technological innovations like advancements in computer, phones,
cloud services, artificial intelligence, security systems, applications and software have shifted
the minds of the customers from the traditional money transfer system to the online money
transfer system. This shift in the choice of the customer has resulted in the downfall of the
traditional financial institutions. In this literature how the traditional companies are facing the
challenge and what are the impacts of the financial technology companies on the online
money transfer are the main points of concern.
Chapter 3: Research and Methodology
3.1 Type of investigation
This section refers to the research methodology outline that portrays objectivity of the
methodology. This research will follow the positivism philosophy to assess the impact of the