--- title: "U.S.- Mexico Remittances: Can Mobile Apps Drive Growth? | MarketResearch.com" description: Market research shows that innovations in mobile applications is driving growth in the financial services sector known as remittances. image: https://blog.marketresearch.com/hs-fs/file-32011591-jpg/images/mexicomoneytransferblog.jpg --- [![MarketResearch.com](https://blog.marketresearch.com/hs-fs/hub/209482/file-22777923.gif?width=295&height=66&name=file-22777923.gif "MarketResearch.com")](https://www.marketresearch.com/) [Market Research Blog](https://blog.marketresearch.com/) # U.S.- Mexico Remittances: Can Mobile Apps Drive Growth? | MarketResearch.com by [Cindy Frei](https://blog.marketresearch.com/author/cindy-frei), on May 6, 2013 ![MexicoMoneyTransferBlog](https://blog.marketresearch.com/hs-fs/file-32011591-jpg/images/mexicomoneytransferblog.jpg?width=208&height=208&name=mexicomoneytransferblog.jpg) President Obama signaled a newly [collaborative spirit](http://wapo.st/135bvIl) during his recent visit to Mexico, and emphasized strong focus on the Administration's agendas for immigration reform and the Drug War. **Economics **are subtexts to both [immigration reform](http://bloom.bg/18sr1xn) and to the two nations' shared stake in ending the sales of and violence around illegal drugs. In the cities and towns of the U.S., far from the pomp of State visits, many Mexican-American immigrants also are likely to be especially concerned about another aspect of U.S. - Mexico relations that directly affects their lives: The challenges they face in making Internet-based payments from the U.S. -- known as **remittances** -- to business partners, family-members or friends in Mexico. ### Internet-Related Barriers The advent of U.S.-to-Mexico Internet remittances brings promise, but also poses challenges. By now, all of the major remitters -- including **MoneyGram, Western Union, CitiBank** --  have such a service. They offer the **24-hour, 7 day per week convenience** for which Internet-driven financial transactions are ostensibly famous. [Trade policy](http://huff.to/18yBS97) between the U.S. and Mexico has impact on these services although technological innovation is a more pressing issue to customers on both ends of the remittances pipeline. These businesses should provide a relatively low-expense route of service, which can translate to lower costs for consumers. For example, a new company, San Francisco-based Xoom, has added a wrinkle: the Internet is the only point of contact for its customers. But we found that U.S. immigrants remitting to Mexico may not be fully-equipped for using the Internet for remittances yet. Via **in-person interviews** of Mexican immigrants living in the Pilsen neighborhood of Chicago, we found that, while many held bank accounts, many had Internet access, and [most had a smartphone](https://www.marketresearch.com/AMI-Partners-Inc-v3030/Latin-America-SMB-Mobility-Landscape-7357970/), only **a small percentage** used the Internet to send money to Mexico. Xoom, which had grown its active customer base to roughly **850,000 by Q1 2013,** has also spent a great deal to appeal to these customers. Part of this cost, in our opinion, may implicitly involve **convincing customers** that Internet remittances are a safe option. While virtually all remitters noted pointed to low cost and convenience as factors in selecting a money transfer service, dependability and security were also significant factors. ### Can Mobile Apps Improve the Process? We found that face-to-face interactions—whereby the remitter could physically provide funds to another person, then follow the interaction to the transactional conclusion—provided a **sense of security.** To help combat any potential worries about security (as well as simply provide tracking and timing information), Xoom now provides customers a variety of ways to track their transfers by text message, email updates and 24/7 support. For its customers, this appears to be enough; the key involves convincing the more security-phobic to give **Internet transactions** a try. Mobile applications also provide a way around the issue. By our estimates, in Mexico, only **27% of Mexican adults age 15 and older** [have an account ](http://bit.ly/11HI9Nc)at a formal financial institution, but more than 95% use mobile phones; we also found that **7 in 10** of our U.S. immigrant remitters had smart phones. So, the technology is being embraced on both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border. In Mexico, mobile has become *the* way to reach tens of millions of heretofore "unbanked" consumers (those without bank accounts).  In the U.S.,  perhaps it can play a similar role in acclimating remitters to **Internet-driven transactions.** ### A New Report Provides Insights Our new report, ***[Mobile and Alternative Payments in Mexico](http://bit.ly/12JQC1B)*,** explores  the many key factors involved in the remittances services sector, and other aspects of financial services in the nation. In addition to an in-depth data analysis of what's driving the remittances sector, **the report also explores branch expansion, regulatory changes in consumer deposit accounts and bank cards,** and a strong push to facilitate mobile banking and payments. Indeed, major banks and telecommunications companies, most notably Telcel, have launched mobile banking and payments platforms that we expect to gain significant traction in 2013.   For the full analysis -- **and timely intelligence that can aid your business decisions** -- click below to access the report. [![Mobile and Alternative Payments in Mexico](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/209482/26dbabf7-7573-4a42-9399-20905111d817.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/209482/26dbabf7-7573-4a42-9399-20905111d817) Thanks for reading!  ![david morris](https://blog.marketresearch.com/hs-fs/file-31990569-jpg/images/david_morris.jpg?width=85&height=129&name=david_morris.jpg) David Morris Research Analyst     Topics: [Consumer Electronics](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/consumer-electronics) - [Tweet](https://twitter.com/share) [![Will Self-Driving Vehicles Be a Reality by 2025? White Paper](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/209482/3fb25279-b81e-43f2-b2ee-bb44347bff07.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/209482/3fb25279-b81e-43f2-b2ee-bb44347bff07) Search Blog Posts Search ### About This Blog Our goal is to help you better understand your customer, market, and competition in order to help drive your business growth. ### Subscribe ### Popular Posts - [5 Steps to Estimate Your Market Size](https://blog.marketresearch.com/5-steps-to-estimate-market-size) - [6 Booming Industries to Watch in 2018](https://blog.marketresearch.com/6-booming-industries-to-watch-in-2018) - [5 Top Apparel Industry Trends](https://blog.marketresearch.com/5-top-apparel-industry-trends-in-2017) - [The Beverage Industry: New Forecasts & Trends](https://blog.marketresearch.com/the-beverage-industry-new-forecasts-and-trends) - [12 Leading Companies in Clinical Laboratory Services](https://blog.marketresearch.com/12-leading-companies-in-clinical-laboratory-services) ### Recent Posts ### Posts by Topic - [Industry Insights (950)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/industry-insights) - [Market Research Strategy (276)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/market-research-strategy) - [Food & Beverage (140)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/food-beverage) - [Healthcare (139)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/healthcare) - [The Freedonia Group (121)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/the-freedonia-group) - [How To's (110)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/how-tos) - [Market Research Provider (98)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/market-research-provider) - [Manufacturing & Construction (90)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/manufacturing-construction) - [Pharmaceuticals (89)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/pharmaceuticals) - [Packaged Facts (78)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/packaged-facts) - [Telecommunications & Wireless (74)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/telecommunications-wireless) - [Heavy Industry (72)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/heavy-industry) - [Software & Enterprise Computing (68)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/software-enterprise-computing) - [Transportation & Shipping (64)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/transportation-shipping) - [Energy & Resources (60)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/energy-resources) - [Retail (60)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/retail) - [Marketing (58)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/marketing) - [Profound (57)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/profound) - [Medical Devices (55)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/medical-devices) - [House & Home (53)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/house-home) - [Materials & Chemicals (53)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/materials-chemicals) - [Pets (50)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/pets) - [Consumer Electronics (47)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/consumer-electronics) - [Public Sector (43)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/public-sector) - [Biotechnology (41)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/biotechnology) - [E-commerce & IT Outsourcing (40)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/e-commerce-it-outsourcing) - [Business Services & Administration (39)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/business-services-administration) - [Diagnostics (38)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/diagnostics) - [Demographics (37)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/demographics) - [Education (36)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/education) - [Custom Market Research (35)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/custom-market-research) - [Travel & Leisure (34)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/travel-leisure) - [Academic (33)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/academic) - [Financial Services (32)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/financial-services) - [Media (32)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/media) - [Computer Hardware & Networking (30)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/computer-hardware-networking) - [Simba Information (24)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/simba-information) - [Kalorama Information (21)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/kalorama-information) - [Cosmetics & Personal Care (19)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/cosmetics-personal-care) - [Knowledge Centers (19)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/knowledge-centers) - [Apparel (18)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/apparel) - [Market Research Subscription (16)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/market-research-subscription) - [Social Media (16)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/social-media) - [Advertising (14)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/advertising) - [Big Data (14)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/big-data) - [Holiday (11)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/holiday) - [Emerging Markets (8)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/emerging-markets) - [SEO (8)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/seo) - [Artificial Intelligence (5)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/artificial-intelligence) - [medical (4)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/medical) - [generative AI (2)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/generative-ai) - [mining (2)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/mining) - [Agriculture (1)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/agriculture) - [Associations (1)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/associations) - [Religion (1)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/religion) - [coaching (1)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/coaching) - [electricity (1)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/electricity) - [refineries (1)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/refineries) - [space battery (1)](https://blog.marketresearch.com/topic/space-battery) [see all](https://blog.marketresearch.com/blog-home-page/bid/276073/u-s-mexico-remittances-can-mobile-apps-drive-growth-marketresearch-com#) ### Contact **MarketResearch.com** 6116 Executive Blvd Suite 550 Rockville, MD 20852 800.298.5699 (U.S.) +1.240.747.3093 (International) [customerservice@marketresearch.com](mailto:customerservice@marketresearch.com) ### From Our Blog ### Subscribe to Blog ### CONNECT WITH US [![LinkedIn](https://static.hsappstatic.net/social_shared/static-2.2815/img/followme/icon_linkedin.png)](http://www.linkedin.com/company/marketresearch) [![Twitter](https://static.hsappstatic.net/social_shared/static-2.2815/img/followme/icon_twitter.png)](https://twitter.com/MarketResearch_) [![Facebook](https://static.hsappstatic.net/social_shared/static-2.2815/img/followme/icon_facebook.png)](https://www.facebook.com/MarketResearchDotCom) [![YouTube](https://static.hsappstatic.net/social_shared/static-2.2815/img/followme/icon_youtube.png)](https://www.youtube.com/user/MarketResearchDotCom) [![Pinterest](https://static.hsappstatic.net/social_shared/static-2.2815/img/followme/icon_pinterest.png)](https://www.pinterest.com/mrktresearch/) ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@type" : "BlogPosting", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "Cindy Frei", "url" : "https://blog.marketresearch.com/author/cindy-frei" }, "datePublished" : "2013-05-06T21:38:00.000Z", "headline" : "U.S.- Mexico Remittances: Can Mobile Apps Drive Growth? | MarketResearch.com", "image" : [ "https://blog.marketresearch.com/hs-fs/file-32011591-jpg/images/mexicomoneytransferblog.jpg" ], "mainEntityOfPage" : { "@id" : "https://blog.marketresearch.com/blog-home-page/bid/276073/u-s-mexico-remittances-can-mobile-apps-drive-growth-marketresearch-com", "@type" : "WebPage" }, "publisher" : { "@type" : "Organization", "logo" : { "@type" : "ImageObject", "url" : "https://blog.marketresearch.com/hubfs/Logos/mrdclogo_email.png" }, "name" : "MarketResearch.com, LLC" } } ```