Google Pay users in the United States can now transfer money to app users in India and Singapore, and the company plans to expand to dozens of more countries in the near future, Google announced on Tuesday.
The new feature is made possible through Google‘s partnership with remittance companies Wise and Western Union, according to a company readout.
“For some, sending money back to their home countries is a regular activity and we are making it more accessible by adding it to the app that you use for your everyday money tasks,” Google wrote in the readout.
Google Pay users who wish to send money to international users can search for the account they wish to send money to, tap “Pay” on the screen, and select either Western Union or Wise. From there, users follow the on-screen instructions to complete the payment.
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Fees will be applied for international transfers, but users will be able to make unlimited free transfers with Western Union until June 16. Wise is waiving fees on the first transfer up to $500.
Google plans to expand support for the program to 80 countries through Wise and support for 200 countries via Western Union by the end of 2021.
The larger goal for the company’s new feature is to enable Google Pay to send money to “a lot more [countries] of the world,” Google’s Director of Product Management Josh Woodward told PYMNTS.com
“With this new integration, you can access Wise’s fast, convenient service, without having to leave the Google Pay app,” Wise said in a statement, adding that the new integration allows U.S. Google Pay users to pay friends and family in “the 80+ countries that Wise already sends to.”
Shelly Swanback, president of Western Union Product and Platform, said the partnership will “help people continue supporting one another,” citing the coronavirus pandemic’s effect on communities around India and the need for friends and family to transfer money easily now more than ever.
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“Every year, people around the world send nearly $700 billion to friends and relatives in their home countries, which pay for essential expenditures like healthcare, education, bills and more,” Google added in Tuesday’s statement, saying the coronavirus pandemic likely contributed to an increase in international transactions.
