Visa, Enfuce and Epassi collaborate to support refugees in France
Enfusa Finnish cloud-powered fintech, has entered into a partnership with Visa and French social enterprise Welcome. Placeto distribute prepaid Visa cards to refugees arriving in France in 2022.
The Welcome.Place pilot project initially focuses on Ukrainian refugees who arrived in France after the start of Ukraine’s war. according to United Nations, an estimated eight million people have fled Ukraine since. Around 120,000 of them have arrived in France registered under official national aid programmes.
Welcome.Places’ ‘Welcome package’ is distributed to newcomers in France. Refugees and immigrants receive a prepaid Visa card to facilitate spending on necessary goods and services during the first weeks in the country.
Welcome.Place was established in 2022 as a community-driven neobank. It aimed to provide simple, inclusive and accessible financial solutions for all newcomers to help them settle quickly. Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) and companies are able to offer their newcomers community banking services and financial solutions provided by Welcome.Place and its partners.
Finnish card and mobile solution provider Email is also involved and will issue the cards. The cards are pre-loaded with funds, with the aim of helping refugees buy basic necessities.
Enfuce and Epassi plan to facilitate all card issuance and physical card distribution. Enfuce’s cloud-based processing platform also enables Welcome.Place to remotely and instantly set full spending control on each card. The social enterprise is able to specify where and how cards can be used. The cards give them full tracking and monitoring of expenses.
The cards may be blocked from use in certain merchant category codes such as gambling and games. Usage limits can also be changed in real time to enable purchases at approved locations.
Welcome.Place’s ambitions to expand its scope
Katherine Brown, VP and head of inclusive impact and sustainability for Visa, commented on the pilot. She explained: “This pilot represents an incredibly important step in promoting the economic and social inclusion of displaced people in Europe.
“Accelerating access to the mainstream money system improves opportunities to rebuild a life in a new environment, which is why Visa is proud to partner with Enfuce to enable a place of welcome for those affected by forced displacement.”
Rooh Savar, co-founder and CEO of Welcome.Place, explained his motivations for starting the initiative. He said: “In 2009, when I came to France as a refugee, I did not have a bank account while I had some means of income. But when I didn’t have any more money, I couldn’t buy anything. After a few months I was finally able to open a bank account. However, this was without a card that allowed me to withdraw money from ATMs or pay in shops or online.
“This situation lasted for over a year and negatively affected my personal and professional life. We created Welcome.Place to ensure that every newcomer can have access to banking solutions adapted to his/her situation.”
Once the pilot project is complete, Welcome.Place expects that a larger contract will later be signed in 2023 to expand the scope of the program. It hopes to serve a larger number of refugees, along with collaborations with more NGOs and commercial partners.
Helping refugees “rebuild their lives”
Denise Johansson, co-founder and co-CEO of Enfuce, commented on the work Enfuce is doing to support. She said: “We are delighted to be working with Welcome.Place to help them with the important work they do, and with our partners Epassi and Visa we are committed to ensuring refugees have access to the funds they need through a prepaid card which looks and works like a regular bank card.
“Enfuce’s first aid card is designed to help aid organizations distribute money to the people who need it, immediately, securely and in full compliance with regulatory requirements. Not only does the Welcome.Place card program give full control over how donated funds are distributed and used, most importantly it gives refugees the opportunity to rebuild their lives and become financially included.
Monika Liikamaa, also co-founder and co-CEO of Enfuce, explained the need to help refugees maintain their “dignity and privacy”. Liikamaa commented: “Whether through conflict or climate crises, millions of people depend on humanitarian aid that can be delivered quickly and safely.
– Refugees may have a fear of appearing vulnerable, or feel ashamed of standing in a queue to receive cash. When they have already suffered so much, it is important to give aid recipients dignity and privacy.
“Enfuce’s first aid card is an example of how modern, integrated payment solutions can transform the delivery of humanitarian aid. It can improve operational speed and security, and promote financial inclusion.”
