International Day of Family Remittances
16/6/2022 | 4 minute read
Ranking of Latin America’s top 10 remittance-receiving countries shows increase of inbound remittances steady since beginning of COVID-19
Guatemala and Ecuador exceeded the 30% growth barrier
Ecuador displaced Brazil in position # 7 of the top Latin American remittance-receiving countries of 2021
Peru enters the list with double-digit growth in the last year
Globally, Mexico displaced China as the second-largest recipient of family remittances in 2021
16 June 2022 - DENVER, Colo – The 10 countries that received the most remittances in Latin America and the Caribbean have all experienced record growth that exceeds double digits, according to a new ranking released for the International Day of Family Remittances (June 16) by WorldRemit, a leading digital payments company.
Mexico, Guatemala, and the Dominican Republic lead the list of top remittance-receiving countries in 2021 with a record of US $51.6B, $15.3B, and $10.4B, respectively. These figures represent a percentage growth compared to 2020 of 27.1% in the case of Mexico, 34.9% for Guatemala, and 26.6% in the Dominican Republic.
Guatemala and Ecuador registered the highest percentage growth in total remittances received from 2020 to 2021, surpassing the 30% barrier, followed by Honduras.
Below is the total list of the top 10 countries in the region based on total inbound remittances.
Mexico
Total Remittances 2021: 51,594 million USD
Total Remittances 2020: 40,606 million USD
Percentage Increase 2021 vs. 2020: 27.1%
Guatemala
Total Remittances 2021: 15,296 million USD
Total Remittances 2020: 11,340 million USD
Percentage Increase 2021 vs. 2020: 34.9%
Remittances as % of GDP: 17.8%
Dominican Republic
Total Remittances 2021: 10,402 million USD
Total Remittances 2020: 8,219 million USD
Percentage Increase 2021 vs. 2020: 26.6%
Remittances as % of GDP: 10.9%
Colombia
Total Remittances 2021: 8,597 million USD
Total Remittances 2020: 6,908 million USD
Percentage Increase 2021 vs. 2020: 24.4%
El Salvador
Total Remittances 2021: 7,517 million USD
Total Remittances 2020: 5,919 million USD
Percentage Increase 2021 vs. 2020: 26.8%
Remittances as % of GDP: 24.1%
Honduras
Total Remittances 2021: 7,370 million USD
Total Remittances 2020: 5,741 million USD
Percentage Increase 2021 vs. 2020: 28.3%
Remittances as % of GDP: 23.6%
Ecuador
Total Remittances 2021: 4,362 million USD
Total Remittances 2020: 3,338 million USD
Percentage Increase 2021 vs. 2020: 30.7%
Brazil
Total Remittances 2021: 3,921 million USD
Total Remittances 2020: 3,312 million USD
Percentage Increase 2021 vs. 2020: 18.4%
Haiti
Total Remittances 2021: 3,639 million USD
Total Remittances 2020: 3,110 million USD
Percentage Increase 2021 vs. 2020: 17%
Remittances as % of GDP: 21.4%
Peru
Total Remittances 2021: 3,592 million USD
Total Remittances 2020: 2,938 million USD
Percentage Increase 2021 vs. 2020: 22.3%
Sources: Central bank of each country - Banxico, Banco de Guatemala, Banco Central de la República Dominicana, Banco de la República, Banco Central de Reserva, Banco Central de Honduras, Banco Central do Brasil,Banco Central de Ecuador, Banco Central de Reserva del Perú,Banco Mundial, Consejo Monetario Centroaméricano, CEMLA, and Inter-American Dialogue.
“Income from remittances represents more than 20% of the GDP for countries like Haiti, Honduras and El Salvador, which shows us how impactful remittances can be for numerous communities within the region,” said Jorge Godínez Reyes, Head of the Americas at WorldRemit.
At the regional level, remittance flows to Latin America and the Caribbean reached 131 billion dollars in 2021, which represents a 25.3% increase compared to 2020. While at the global level, Mexico displaced China as the second-largest recipient of family remittances in 2021.
In addition, WorldRemit data analysis sheds light on the movement of remittances within the countries of the region, although the highest percentage of remittances comes from the U.S. and Europe, a growth in intra-regional remittances has been observed driven by the communities of Haitians living in Chile, Venezuelans in Colombia or the impact of migrants in transit through Mexico.
“Although 75% of remittance flows originate in the United States, the data reflects a significant rise in the intra-regional remittance market, in line with the ongoing migration of Latin Americans to Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Panama, the Dominican Republic and even Mexico,” added Godínez.
Technology has played a key role in driving the record-breaking number of remittances across the region. What began as an accelerated adoption of digital payment methods in the midst of COVID-19 social distancing measures has turned into permanent changes in the post-pandemic era. This trend towards digitalization has been steadily growing over the past few years as evidenced in a recent report from the Inter-American Dialogue which states that transfers to Latin America and the Caribbean that originated with cash decreased from 89% in 2016 to 80% in the first quarter of 2021. On the other hand, the number of people using web pages, mobile applications and bank transfers increased from 8% to 16% during the same time period.
About WorldRemit
We are a leading global payments company and, along with Sendwave, part of Zepz, a group powering two global remittance brands.
We disrupted an industry previously dominated by offline legacy players by taking international money transfers online – making them safer, faster and lower cost. We currently operate in more than 5,000 money transfer corridors worldwide and as part of Zepz, are part of a 1,400 person global workforce.
Sending money with WorldRemit is 100% digital (cashless), increasing convenience and enhancing security. For those receiving money, we offer a wide range of options, including bank transfer, cash pickup, airtime top up and mobile money.
Backed by Accel, TCV and Leapfrog – WorldRemit’s headquarters are in London, United Kingdom, with regional offices in the United States, Poland, Canada, Australia, Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines, South Africa, Somaliland, Uganda, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, Zimbabwe and Belgium.
About Zepz
Zepz Group is the group powering leading global remittance brands: WorldRemit and Sendwave. Since 2021, Zepz Group has been disrupting an industry previously dominated by offline legacy players by reducing the barriers to finance and increasing safety and convenience for users. Every day, Zepz Group and its brands work towards unlocking the prosperity of cross-border communities through finance and technology - driven by the vision of a world that celebrates migrants’ impact on prosperity, at home and abroad.
Zepz Group brands have helped cross-border communities send over $15bn from 50 countries, to recipients in 130 countries in 2022, and operate over 5,000 money transfer corridors worldwide. Zepz Group employs over 1,400 people globally as a remote-first employer, with team members located across six continents.
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