Welcome to a video series I am putting together on how to start a money transfer business. It seems folks don’t have too much time to read lengthy articles or other blog posts, so I thought I’d give it a try by putting up small (read: short) videos that explain some of the nuances. Needless to say, you can argue, each video left this out or left that out. That is true. Even though as small of a subject each video discusses, it is in NO way complete. There is so much information out there, I am not sure if I or anyone else would be able to compile it together.
Nonetheless, this is a small endeavour to try to achieve just that.
Introduction – Watch This First
Starting Out? Learn the basics
- How To Start A Money Transfer Business? YouTube Series (Intro video)
- Financing – How are you getting the money to start this? Friends or Family?
- Monetary Requirement – How much money is required to start it?
- What “problem” are you trying to solve?
- Build versus Lease versus Buy – Which one is the right choice?
- Banking, License, Compliance, and Regulations!
- What Are Remittances?
- Why Are Remittances Important?
- What is an ISO and what do they do?
- What is a Flow of Funds (Time Motion Diagram)
- What is Passporting?
- What is KYC?
- What is KYB?
- Your Business Intelligence Plan?
- How to Validate your Problem & Solution Via Field Research?
- What is a Term Sheet?
- What Is Source Of Funds (SOF)?
- What is Aggregation and How does it Work in the World of Money Transfer?
- What is Liquidity?
- What Is The Travel Rule?
- Money Transfer as a Service (MTaaS) – General Presentation
- Explanation of Cross Border Money Transfer (Pre-Funded and Non-Pre-Funded)
- Example of Money Transfer from US to UK. Walk Through Description
- Currency Cross Rate! What Is It?
- What Is The Mid-Market Rate (or the Interbank rate)? Why Is It Important?
- What Are Exotic Currencies? Why Are They Called Exotic To Begin With?
- What is a UBO (Ultimate Beneficial Owner)?
- How To Start A Money Transfer Business? (Updated Intro Message)
Comprehensive 2025 Guide
For a structured step-by-step roadmap to starting your money transfer business, read our comprehensive 2025 guide covering licensing, banking, technology, and compliance.
Licensing
- Difference between MTL and MSB?
- What is Money Transmitter License and How Can You Get One?
- Do I Need A License To Start A Money Transfer Service?
- How many Money Transmitter Licenses do I require if I have to do business in the US?
- Licensing: Agent vs. Program Manager
- How will you operate? As a License Holder or as an ISO?
- What Is A Decent Revenue Share For Using Someone Else’s License For Regulatory Coverage?
- Why Do You Need a Money Transmitter License If You Are Licensed Outside the U.S.?
- How Much Do Money Transmitter Licenses Cost?
- What Does A Program Manager Do?
- What Is A Program Manager? (Part II)
- FinCEN Registration & Money Transmitter Licenses
- Is FinCEN Registration Free or Not?
- Why FinCEN Registration is NOT a License?
- Unlicensed Money Transfer! What to do next?
- 3rd Party Payment Apps? It Might Be Illegal To Use Them!
- Difference Between An Authorized Delegate vs Non-Authorized Delegate
- I have an idea for an app. Do I need a license to send money all over the world?
- Buying a UK SPI License? Consider this!
- Working with an EMI license and becoming an EMD Agent
- Nationwide Coverage vs. Must-Have States?
- Want To Get Your Own EMI Or Become An EMI Agent? Consider This.
- Leveraging A License
- Single-State License In the United States – What Can You Do With It?
- Difference Between EMD (Registered Agent) and Sponsorship
- Difference between an API and an EMI
- What is a Program Manager? (Updated)
Banking
- What is a Correspondent Tie-Up Agreement?
- What is a Pre-funded Account?
- What is a Payout Partner?
- What is a Good Funds Settled Model?
- What is a Payment Account?
- What is Pre-Funding and How Does it Work?
- What is a Reserve Account?
- What Is An FBO (For Benefit Of) Account?
- What is Netting Off and How Does it Work?
- What is a Correspondent Tie-up? & Why is it Necessary?
- What is a Tri-Party Correspondent Tie-Up Agreement?
- As a Licensed MTO Can You Operate A Bank Account Outside In Another Country?
- What If Banks Decide To Close My Account After The Account Has Been Active For Some Time?
- BYOB – Build Your Own Bank! (Video: 1 of 3)
- BYOB – Build Your Own Bank! (Video: 2 of 3)
- BYOB – Build Your Own Bank (Video: 3 of 3)
- Need Pre-funding Money for your Money Transfer business?
- Build Your Own Bank As A Service (BYOBaaS)
- Understanding Merchant Account Zones for Acquiring
- Flow of Funds for Correspondent Accounts (for Remittance as a Service) – USA Only
- Merchant Account! You Cannot Just Get It – You Have To Apply And Qualify For It
- Want To Build A Neo Bank?
- Card Acquiring Options for Money Transfer Operators
Remittances
- How Big is the P2P Remittance Market?
- How Big is the B2B Market?
- What is a Corridor Killer?
- Negotiating with a Financial Institution – Are You a Good Negotiator?
- Are You A Fintech That Is Going From Zero to One?
- What is Remittance-As-A-Service (RaaS)?
- What are the Pros and Cons of RaaS (Remittance-as-a-Service)?
- How Much Does Remittance-As-A-Service (RaaS) Cost?
- How Much Do I Charge For RaaS Consulting?
- What Does The Value Added Payment Stack in Remittances Look Like?
- Why Value-Added Payments In Remittances Reduces Financial Misappropriation?
- How Long Does It Take To Setup A Remittance-As-A-Service Solution?
- Is It Possible To Have Real Time Transfers in Money Transfer World?
- How Big Is The Real Time Payments Economy in the Money Transfer World?
- Is There Fraud In The Money Transfer Industry?
- What is Hawala (or Hundi)?
- What is Hawala? (Part Two)
- What are Official and Unofficial Remittances?
- The Case For Small Value Remittances
- How Does Hawala Work? How In A Few Minutes, You Can Get Money Across The World, In Your Hotel Room!
- Who Pays for the Remittance Fees Customer or MTO?
- Real-Time Payments The Trillion Dollar Opportunity
- Interoperability in Payments
- Value Addition in Money Transfers (Remittances)
- Interoperability between Wallets and Stored Value Systems
- Super APIs. What the heck are they?
- Quick Understanding of Hyperlocal Payments
- Difference between an Aggregator and a Super API
- Let’s talk about Somalia
- Where Does Your Company Need To Be Registered (For RAAS)?
- You Do Not Have To Be Afraid Of RaaS From The United States
- Let Us Talk About Turkey Versus UAE: Who Is Winning The Money-Transfer Game?
- Want to start a Money Transfer Company? Have You Considered RaaS?
- The Next Big Thing? Micropayments!
- The Brick Equation
- How Big Is The B2B Market Compared To The P2P Market?
- How Big Is The Market Size For Small Value Transfers?
- Percentage Only Transactions – Removing Network Access Charges
- Wallet vs. Remittances
- Demo of White-Label, Skin-able, Mobile App for Remittances
- World Bank Data: Average Cost of Sending Remittances
- Launching of new Remittance as a Service (RaaS) Pricing
Cryptocurrency
- Remittances 2.0 – Crypto in remittances
- USA to Nigeria: Money Transfer using Bitcoins! (or any other country in Africa)
- How Can A Traditional Money Transfer Business Get Started With Cryptocurrency For Remittances?
- Got a Cryptocurrency Project? Think you’re exempt from licensing? Think again!
- How Stable Coins Have Failed For Value Transfer In Cross Border Payments
- Five Things You Can Do To Get Started With Crypto for Your Money Transfer Business – No Fluff!
- Don’t Fall For COVID19 Token / Coins for Remittances Scam!
- What Happens When Central Bank Issued Digital Currency (CBDC) Comes Out?
- What Is A Collateralized Asset In The Digital/Crypto World?
- What I Think Of XRP
- Is XRP and RippleNet Going To Be Dominant And Be The Winner?
- Starting a Crypto-Related Money Transfer Business? Understand Regulations!
Operations
- Is There Money To Be Made In The Money Transfer Business?
- Is there Money To Be Made in the Money Transfer Business (Part II)?
- Are You A Small Money Transfer Operator? 12 Questions You Need To Ask Yourself.
- FinCEN MSB Definition for Transactions Under $1000 Per Person Per Day
- Are You A Small Independent Money Transfer Operator That Is Struggling?
- Understanding Custody of Funds in Money Transfer / Remittances
- 5 Questions Before Starting A Money Transfer Business to High-Risk Countries!
- 10 Things to know before Starting your own Money Transfer Business!
- FAQ on Money Transmitter License Sponsorship under an ISO Program for the United States
- How to Build a Small Payments (Money Transfer) Company
- 7 Steps to Starting a Cross Border Payments Company
- Card Processing for your Money Transfer Business
- As a Money Transfer Company… What are your Top 5 Problems?
- What is a Remittance Contract? …How Does It Work?
- Legal Contracts… Do You Have A Say In Them?
- Legal Opinion: Why Banks Do Not Provide Legal Opinion For Your Flow Of Funds Or Licensing?
- EMI Agents & Restriction on Correspondent Agreements
- How To Better Your Money Transfer Business During These Quarantined Times
- 5 Things To Do Today To Better Your Money Transfer Business In The US
- How Do We Charge Our fees?
- Volume Fees! What’s The Magic Number?
- Why Do Prices Vary In Different Markets?
- Architecting A Mobile Wallet That Customers Want
- So You Want To Start A Money Transfer Business?
- Shall We Test Your Knowledge On Money Transfer?
- 12-Pivot Points for Money Transfer Operators
- MLS Type Collaboration for Money Transfer Businesses
- USA to Nigeria Money Transfer Business
- Nigeria: Pre-funding Project
- MTOs as Cash Out Points App Idea
- Somali MTOs in Minnesota – The Turkey Option!
- Naira Parallel Market Rate and Money Transfer
- How Do You Defeat Or Work With A Parallel Market Rate?
- Revenue Modeling Google Sheet for Remittances – Simplex and Complex
- Financial Modeling For The Money Transfer Business
- Some hurdles to consider when starting a money transfer business to Nigeria
Take the Next Step
Access the full 2025 guide now to get the expert insights you need to turn your money transfer business plan into reality.
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This page was last updated on May 6, 2025.
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