The service is the first to be hosted by a "donor" country for direct mobile phone money transfers.
An unusual new money transfer system has been unveiled by a UK bank, aimed at helping Polish workers send money back home via mobile phone.
The NatWest service, which has already been launched for use, is thought to be the first such mobile money transfer scheme from a "donor" country, the Guardian reports. Hundreds of thousands of Poles have flocked to the UK since their country gained EU membership in 2004, taking advantage of higher wages than they can get for equivalent jobs in their native land.
Technology from electronics firm Montoise is used for the new service, which is currently restricted to holders of a NatWest current account alone.
The new transfer system represents a departure in the way that people commonly manage their money in their current accounts and could become widely adopted by other high street banks if successful. Rising immigration from eastern Europe and elsewhere could also prove a crucial driver of this trend.
Roy Vella, head of mobile at RBS, owners of NatWest, said: "Person-to-person transfer, whether across regions or within borders, represents a massive flow of payments. This is definitely just the beginning for us, not the end."
Around £1 billion a year is thought to be sent home by Poles in the UK each year.
Compare current accounts via money.co.uk


