About
Via Mundo is a long-established education travel agency serving Brazil’s northeast region, sending students abroad for cultural exchanges while welcoming students from Europe.
The Challenge
As Via Mundo’s international footprint grew, the cracks in their previous cross-border payment methods widened.
High banking fees, slow processing times, inconsistent exchange rates, and difficulty receiving funds from overseas partners created unnecessary pressure on the organisation’s small team. The more they scaled, the more these frictions multiplied.
Brazilian banking costs in particular posed a significant financial barrier. Not just once, but every time a payment was needed.
As Marina Wanner, Operation and Support Coordinator, at Via Mundo described, “The fees from the banks in Brazil are quite high, and the transfers take much longer. I think that was our biggest challenge.”
Even when funds were being sent from Europe or South America into Brazil, the process was slow and unpredictable, undermining the reliability that Via Mundo needed to run international programs smoothly. As Marina explains, “To get money from abroad, it was still challenging for us because it took so long, and sometimes there was a lot of difficulty in making the payment to us.”
The Solution
TransferMate offered Via Mundo a modern, intuitive, and highly efficient way to manage global payments. Offering a payments platform that supported their operational demands, their team structure, and their growth trajectory.
The platform quickly became their primary method for sending tuition payments abroad, eliminating many of the manual, expensive steps that had previously slowed their processes.
“When we need to transfer funds to institutions around the world, we use TransferMate to get the payment wherever in the world it’s needed.”
And for the first time, Via Mundo could also easily receive commission payments from international institutions, a significant advantage as they grow their business.
“We set up a Global Account in US dollars, and they pay our commission to that account using TransferMate.”
Even with a small team, onboarding was effortless. What once required training, lengthy instructions, or trial-and-error became a smooth workflow.
“To be honest, for me, it was very easy and very intuitive. The TransferMate system is quite easy to use.”
Their daily payment process, which was previously slow and multi-layered, is now fast, structured, and transparent.
“I log in to the platform and click on “Make a Payment”. I add the beneficiary, authorize the payment, and wait for the payment to process. It's just that easy.”
But the most defining advantage was financial. TransferMate consistently delivered Via Mundo with preferential FX rates that were competitive with both its banks and previous providers, boosting Via Mundo’s bottom line.
“The conversion rates are the main reason that we use TransferMate. The rates are better than those others we’ve used.”
And when support was needed, the experience only reinforced their trust in the platform.
“The customer service from TransferMate has been perfect when we’ve needed it.”
The Results
For a business sending payments across Canada, Europe, and the UK, even minor FX improvements add up quickly. TransferMate consistently delivered preferential exchange rates.
“Every time we find TransferMate gives a better rate. So yes, we’ve saved money. It's a small difference, but it adds up, which makes our transfers cheaper than using other providers.”
With a leaner post-pandemic team, removing steps from the process made an immediate impact:
“Using TransferMate has helped me save time to focus on other areas of the business.”
The Final Word
“I do recommend TransferMate. I think that it has solved the problem for us and helps us to make payments easier and quicker, while being able to accept commission payments from institutions better than before.”
- Marina Wanner, Operation and Support Coordinator, Via Mundo
Discover how TransferMate can simplify international education payments by contacting the team today.
