MANILA—Global telecom firm Vodafone Qatar has launched a new service that will enable more than 200,000 Filipinos living and working in Qatar to instantly make international money remittances directly from their mobile phones.

The Vodafone Money Transfer service was launched on November 29 at the Qatar Science and Technology Park, the Philippine Embassy in Doha reported.

In partnership with Doha Bank and Globe Telecom, Vodafone Money Transfer lets users to send funds directly from their mobile phones to any GCASH-enabled mobile phone in the Philippines. They can also send money to a bank account or for collection at any of the 18,000 GCASH Remit outlets in the country.

All Vodafone and GCASH transactions are secured with a PIN to ensure safe fund transfer. In addition, both the sender and the recipient are notified of the transaction via SMS.

Vodafone-Qatar Chief Executive Officer John Tombleson said that Vodafone Money Transfer offers cheaper, safe, simple, quick and convenient way of remitting money to the Philippines.

Customers can send money to GCASH phones to the Philippines within minutes at a minimal cost of Qatari riyal (QR) 12 (US$3.30) per transaction compared to the QR15-20 charged by the various remittance companies in Qatar.

The launch of Vodafone Money Transfer featured a live remittance demo from Doha to Manila by Philippine Ambassador Crescente R. Relacion and TV personality Bianca Gonzales in Manila.

The process took less than five minutes from end to end, showing how quick and easy to use the Vodafone Money Transfer.