VoIP provider Rebtel has been steadily growing ever since launch in 2006, with over 20 million users and an increasingly popular VoIP SDK.
But today the company is dipping their toes in a new pool, launching a credit transfer service called Sendly.
Sendly is a standalone app that lets almost anyone in the world send credit to their friends or loved ones that can be used to top up prepaid phones.
Obviously, this move makes sense for Rebtel’s existing customers who are predominantly using the app to talk to loved ones who are in a different country. Sending funds to distant loved ones goes hand-in-hand with that, especially as pay-as-you-go phone plans become more and more popular.
To use Sendly, all you need is the app and the recipient’s phone number. You can choose the amount you’re sending, and when the notification is received, the money automatically turns into phone credit.
Here’s what Sendly’s Mans Ullerstam had to say about the launch:
We know that the people who use our calling app the most are those with family and friends in other countries. With Sendly, we want to give millions of callers an easier and quicker way to provide their loved ones with credit to use on calls, texts and data. The ability to send mobile credit to prepaid phone users is another big step we’re taking as a leading communications platform that’s powering stronger connections between individuals, businesses, and mobile subscribers around the globe.
The app is free, and thanks to existing relationships between Rebtel and over 60 global mobile operators, fees taken by the company are lower than other, traditional forms of money transfer. According to CEO and founder Andreas Bernström, Rebtel’s fees are about 12% of the value of the transfer.
But even more interesting are the opportunities beyond topping up a phone. Rebtel sees huge potential for this type of technology to be turned into an API, allowing other app makers to implement money transfer within their apps.
Sendly is available in over 50 countries at launch, and interested parties can learn more here.