Flint Telecom | March 8, 2011 | Press Release
Remit2Vietnam PTY Ltd. to Provide Prepaid Debit Card and Remittance Services to Vietnamese Communities in the United States and Australia
OVERLAND PARK, KS–(Marketwire – March 8, 2011) – Flint Telecom Group, Inc. (http://www.flinttelecomgroup.com) (OTCBB: FLTT), an International Telecoms Technology and Services Organization, today announces that its wholly owned subsidiary Ingedigit International Inc. (“III”), is to become a significant shareholder in the Australian based Remit2Vietnam PTY. Ltd, (“R2V”), a company established in Sydney, Australia to market prepaid debit card and remittance programs from Australia and the United States to Vietnam.
There are over 1.6 million Vietnamese living in the United States and approximately 300,000 living in Australia. Over $8.2 billion dollars were remitted to Vietnam last year and is growing year on year. The Vietnamese banks have shown great interest in and support for the III prepaid debit card and remittance programs with several banks in Vietnam and one bank in Australia having signed Letters Of Intent with R2V to provide prepaid debit cards and remittance services to their customers. The banks are now finalizing the necessary agreements and all technical requirements with first cards expected to be issued by the summer. The partnering banks clearly see the III programs as key to enabling them to capture a significant share of this large and growing market. Currently the well-known independent remittance organizations provide the vast amount of remittances into Vietnam.
III will hold 40% of the equity in R2V with the remaining shares being held by two other groups. III will provide the necessary program development and technical expertise and access to its existing prepaid debit card issuing bank relationships in the United States. III is also providing the prepaid debit card processing and remittance processing from both Australia and the United States to Vietnam with Power2Process, another Flint company, which will receive a fee from every transaction.
Darval Holdings Pty Ltd., New South Wales, Australia, a private investment and operating company recently established to specifically address this opportunity, holds a 50% ownership in R2V. Headed by Jef Rowlison, Managing Director of Mercury Mobile Marketing Pty Ltd in Australia, Darval will be responsible for all investment in the project and is bringing the key Australian banking partner to the consortium. Over the past 6 years Mr. Rowlison and his team at Mercury have been instrumental in creating and launching card programs for CITI Bank, McDonald’s Asia Pacific (@Life) and IGA supermarkets. As a result of these relationships, Darval will also act as marketing partner in Australia and the USA.
Mr. Rowlison stated, “We have been shadowing III as it developed its prepaid debit card and remittance programs over the past two years and we have also seen the rapidly growing opportunity in Vietnam for such programs. The moment is absolutely right to launch these programs between the Australian and U.S. banks in conjunction with Vietnamese banks. The level of remittances is very large and continues to grow and the banks are in need of these services to begin to capture some of the business done by the established remittance houses. We are extremely excited to have reached this milestone and I believe we will quickly capture at least 5% of the remittance market and will have support from the Vietnamese government to do so.”
The other partner in R2V is Golden Connect Pty Ltd. Based in New South Wales, Australia, Golden has extensive history of success in ventures in Australia and throughout the Pacific Rim especially in Vietnam. Mr. Quang Nguyen, Managing Director of Golden, is well connected in the Vietnamese community in all three countries and has managed many successful ventures with Vietnam. Some of these ventures include natural resource opportunities in oil and gas, mining, and in consumer goods. Golden also provides investment banking services, M&A support and pairing business opportunities among companies both within and outside Vietnam. Through its relationships in the Vietnamese communities in Australia and the U.S., Golden will lead the marketing activities through Vietnamese organizations and the commercial communities in these countries. Golden is bringing the key recipient banking relationships in Vietnam to the operation.
Mr. Nguyen stated, “The opportunity for the Vietnamese banks is huge in a market where they currently have a very low market share. The R2V programs bring services to the Vietnamese on a 24*7*365 basis at a much lower cost and far superior service than traditional services. Providing secure and instantaneous remittances of funds to the partnering banks and immediate availability at the banks’ ATM’s is a distinct advantage over other solutions that require recipients to travel to dedicated remittance outlets and to wait in lines that are only available during business hours to receive their funds. The programs also offer many benefits to the Vietnamese living in Vietnam, Australia and the United States. For instance in the U.S., the programs offer so many banking benefits over traditional bank accounts to the Vietnamese in addition to the remittance solution that the convenience of the programs alone will win great support. The established remittance organizations do not currently offer in-country services as part of their offering. We are supporting our belief in this venture with a $1.2 million investment.”
Mr. Abu Karim, III’s President for Australia and Asia Pacific states, “We are extremely pleased to be working with such powerful partners for this exciting opportunity in Vietnam. It is the strength and unique qualities of our innovative suite of financial services that continues our success in India and the Pacific Rim countries. Our fees are fixed and extremely low compared to other providers and are not adjusted by the amount of each transaction. III revenues and net income are generated by the use of the cards, not the amount loaded on them. This is why we have focused on India and Vietnam in first instance as these groups remit millions of low value transactions per year and we get a fee on every transaction. We look forward to working with Darval and Golden and our banking partners to deliver real value for Vietnamese people everywhere in bringing them new, low cost and convenient ways to pay for day-to-day activities and to remit money home.”
About Ingedigit International Inc.
Ingedigit International Inc. is U.S. based international pre-paid debit card company, partnered with both U.S. banks and international banks to offer debit cards and remittance services to their customers. Included with the debit card services are additional services, allowing the partnering banks to add new customers, share funds between existing card holders and perform international fund remittance. All transactions are fully compliant with U.S. and international money laundering laws, as well as counter-terrorism regulations. Transactions are practically instantaneous, available to the card-holder on a 24/7, 365-day basis. In October 2010, Ingedigit International Inc. became a wholly owned subsidiary of Flint Telecom Group Inc.
About Flint Telecom Group, Inc.
Flint Telecom Group Inc. is an international Telecoms Technology Organization with a portfolio of companies that deliver VoIP and wireless communications and prepaid financial products and services globally. Headquartered in Overland Park, Kansas with offices throughout the US, India and Ireland, Flint Telecom Group is a fully reporting company trading on the OTC Bulletin Board® (OTCBB) under the ticker symbol: FLTT.OB. Flint Telecom ranked number 72 in the 2010 Deloitte Technology Fast 500™, Deloitte’s ranking of 500 of the fastest growing technology, media, telecommunications, life sciences and clean technology companies in North America. Flint Telecom was founded by a team of telecom and technology experts with a proven track in building and maintaining international technology companies. Additional information may be found at www.flinttelecomgroup.com
