Why NGOs don’t need to switch banks for cross-border payment

It’s not either or, but both. See how Inpay fits alongside your existing bank set-up.

NGOs may hesitate to explore new payment partners because they assume it means replacing their existing banking relationships.

Spoiler alert: it doesn’t.

Specialist non-bank providers work alongside existing NGO set-ups. So, choosing a non-bank payment provider doesn’t have to increase complexity. On the contrary, it can actually simplify it.

Time to rethink the way you move money?

Banks are generally the default entry point into financial services. Internal governance stipulations may also require NGOs to use traditional banks and providers.

Nevertheless, banks may be unwilling or unable to deal with everyday NGO challenges. For example, conduct anti-financial crime checks against the backdrop of civil or political unrest. Or transfer funds to hard-to-reach countries while managing their own correspondent banking relationships and perceived NGO risk.

Non-bank payment providers are emerging with the right connections to link NGO destination and origin countries. Such providers may already be accepted by governments as regulated entities. So, a robust compliance approach and anti-financial crime controls are prerequisites of their license.

Inpay is one such provider that can complement, rather than be a replacement for, existing NGO payment arrangements.

Your world. Covered

Engaging a non-bank provider supplements bank coverage with hard-to-reach payment corridors. For example, Inpay covers 70% of the top 17 countries receiving humanitarian aid via local bank transfer. And the remainder via international wire to help NGOs get money where it’s needed most.

Built for NGOs

Domestic banks aren’t necessarily set up to provide the true consultative service that NGOs desperately need. Documentation requirements? Shortest, surest route? What’s needed to move stuck payments along? A specialist provider has the NGO expertise your bank doesn’t.

Scale fast

NGOs don’t have huge in-house IT teams. Endless testing, updates and maintenance for each new country they switch on is not for them. A unified payments platform via a single API, in addition to Swift bank connections, helps NGOs scale fast, with minimum fuss.

Simplify multi-currency logistics

Multiple FX conversions. Fragmented treasury functions. Differing settlement and bank cut-off times. Intermediaries. These are just some of the pitfalls of cross-border transfers. As non-bank providers are often running on-us networks, they determine the routing and fees. Plus, support scores of local currencies, simplifying the logistics of multi-currency transfers.

Maximize back-office efficiencies

Almost every business wants to minimize repetitive payment admin tasks. Modern, non-bank providers simplify reconciliation on the back end. That’s usually by consolidating payments into a single format or statement, plus allowing self-service tracking via an online app or portal.

It pays to consider the alternatives…

If NGOs could improve their payment arrangements, they could cut the cost, time and back-office admin associated with international transfers.

These savings would translate directly into the work they do. This could mean more children enrolled in vaccination programs, people given access to safe drinking water, sanitation or preventative malaria medicine.

Improving cross-border payment efficiencies also helps NGOs expand their scope, reach and donor pool. Plus, future-proof their organization by turning payments from an operational necessity into a strategic value driver.