WorldRemit, a digital money transfer service has recorded 10,000 unique transactions completed in the month of December 2016 alone.

The firm also says it saw a 150% YoY growth in 2016, driven primarily by the rapid expansion of Mobile Money accounts as the preferred receive method.

According to Ismail Ahmed, founder and CEO at WorldRemit: “Our Mobile Money partnerships combined with existing services for bank deposits and cash pick-up will give more choice to Tanzanians, further supporting the transition from costly offline remittances via high street agents to faster, cheaper and safer online transfer methods”.

WorldRemit customers can send money to Tanzania via Mobile Money to Tigo Pesa, Vodacom M-Pesa and Zantel Ezy Pesa Mobile Money accounts, as well as bank deposit and cash pick up.

The biggest senders to Tanzania include migrants currently living in the UK, Sweden, Australia, Norway and Canada, amongst others.

With WorldRemit, people in more than 50 countries can send instant, secure transfers to more than 140 destinations. Known as the ‘WhatsApp of money’, WorldRemit makes sending money as easy as sending an instant message.

Remittances play an important role in the economy of Tanzania – in 2015 the country received a total of $390 million according to the WorldBank, almost ten times the amount received in 2010.

WorldRemit customers currently send over 580,000 transfers every month.