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Opal Transfer, a 20-year journey for a better life
Posted: Wednesday,
May 3, 2023

Opal Transfer celebrates 20 years of moving your money with care and speed and making immigrants’ life abroad easier. A modern digital platform, a friendly mobile application with money transfers available 24/7, and a multilingual call centre in 4 countries are helping hundreds of thousands of customers to send money abroad to their loved ones.

The 2000s were marked by diversity and the transition from the cash era to the digital one. People started to travel more and choose better places to live and work. That was the moment when young businesswoman Gita Petkeviča founded Opal Transfer, a money transfer company aiming to help hardworking expats send money easier, faster, and cheaper abroad, back home to their parents, wives, husbands, and children. It all started when the company was registered on 23 April 2003 in London, Victoria.

“It’s been 20 years since we founded Opal Transfer. And looking back on our achievements, we have many things to celebrate today and to be grateful for. We are celebrating two decades of relationship with our customers and team members, of being a constant support and helping expats with reliable, fast, safe, and easy cross-border money transfers. We are celebrating 20 years of being part of a global community, of its story and evolution. And 20 years of Opal Transfer family!”, said Gita Petkeviča, the managing director of Opal Transfer.

Money transfers are about people

It was an ambitious goal because it meant competing and fighting the bank bureaucracy, high rates, and fees. The company is among the pioneers of online money transfer services and, in 20 years, succeeded in building a trustworthy and reliable relationship with over 340 000 customers across Europe.

 “The purpose was to offer our customer an alternative to the difficult and slow way bank transfers were carried out. They needed to send money faster and more conveniently abroad. We are thankful for their trust and believing there can be a better way. Moreover, we were looking to give them something valuable, a service that is both helpful and friendly”, explained Gita Petkeviča.

Opal’s most significant milestones

In December 2005, Opal Transfer expanded and opened another branch in East London, in Stratford. The next important step was made in 2006 when the international money transfer company decided to create a call centre. In 2007 a new branch was opened – in Shepherd’s Bush. By June 2009, the number of transfers exceeded 1 million.

Today, customers send money to and from 41 countries in Europe with Opal Transfer, and the whole process takes a minute. You can open a free account either on mobile by downloading the Opal Transfer App or from your laptop at www.opaltransfer.com.

The managing director of Opal Transfer stated that “We focused on the whole client experience and created a call centre with live customer service in 10 languages. They can send money across Europe superfast just by tapping Opal Transfer App. And we are one click or phone call away, ready to answer in their language”.

One of the greatest advantages of Opal Transfer is talking directly to operators and getting the fast human support you need. That is a unique feature that the company still preserves, compared with many of its competitors and other service providers that replaced humans with robots. Opal Transfer stands out in the crowded market by offering human customer service in 10 languages, including Bulgarian, Romanian, Polish, Latvian, and Lithuanian. The customers are assisted by over 50 employees working in 4 countries in Europe.

When it comes to evaluating the twenty years that have passed, the most meaningful activity for Opal Transfer is the contribution brought to the lives of their clients and being part of the community. And that is the highest motivation for Opal’s team because, behind every money transfer, there is a story that matters.