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'Ave Pa'anga Pau

Ave Pa’anga Pau is a low‑cost, digital remittance product of Tonga Development Bank (TDB) that lets people in Australia and New Zealand send money directly into bank accounts in Tonga using a voucher model instead of traditional cash‑to‑cash transfers.

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Key Facts and Figures

  • Ave Pa’anga Pau was launched by Tonga Development Bank with support from IFC (World Bank Group) and the governments of Australia and New Zealand to lower the cost of remittances to Tonga.​
  • Public sources indicate roughly 1,000 registered users a few years after launch and describe it as one of the cheapest options in the New Zealand–Tonga corridor, with typical total costs around 3–5 percent depending on route and timing.
Mission Statement

Mission Statement

Descriptions from development partners and TDB say the platform’s purpose is to provide fast, secure and affordable remittances for Tongans, helping families receive more of [...]
  • Descriptions from development partners and TDB say the platform’s purpose is to provide fast, secure and affordable remittances for Tongans, helping families receive more of each dollar sent.​
  • Its broader mission is to improve financial inclusion by encouraging formal savings and use of bank accounts in Tonga, rather than relying solely on high‑cost cash channels.
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Core Services

Core Services

Senders open an Ave Pa’anga Pau account with TDB, transfer New Zealand dollars (or Australian dollars where available) to TDB’s designated account, and receive an [...]
  • Senders open an Ave Pa’anga Pau account with TDB, transfer New Zealand dollars (or Australian dollars where available) to TDB’s designated account, and receive an electronic voucher that is redeemed into a beneficiary’s TDB bank account in Tonga.​
  • The platform is cashless on the sending side, operates mainly via online banking and email/SMS notifications, and is being expanded to support additional digital financial services such as savings, bill and school‑fee payments.
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Countries Covered

Countries Covered

The core corridor is New Zealand to Tonga, where the service first launched and remains most established.​ Ave Pa’anga Pau has also been extended to [...]
  • The core corridor is New Zealand to Tonga, where the service first launched and remains most established.​
  • Ave Pa’anga Pau has also been extended to Australia–Tonga transfers, under programs supported by Australian and regional initiatives to reduce remittance costs.
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Fees and FX Rates

Fees and FX Rates

Information from IFC and policy studies report that Ave Pa’anga Pau’s fees are around 4–5 percent of the amount sent for Australia–Tonga remittances, and as [...]
  • Information from IFC and policy studies report that Ave Pa’anga Pau’s fees are around 4–5 percent of the amount sent for Australia–Tonga remittances, and as low as about 3.3 percent from New Zealand to Tonga in some comparisons, which is significantly below typical corridor averages.​
  • For users, the main explicit fees are the service charge embedded in the voucher price and the exchange‑rate margin when converting from NZD/AUD into Tongan pa’anga; there is no separate “sending fee” line item.
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Q and A Selection

Q and A Selection

Q: How does a typical transfer work? A: A sender registers with TDB, sends NZD/AUD from their local bank to the Ave Pa’anga Pau collection [...]

Q: How does a typical transfer work?

A: A sender registers with TDB, sends NZD/AUD from their local bank to the Ave Pa’anga Pau collection account, receives confirmation, and the recipient’s TDB account in Tonga is credited in pa’anga, usually within about one business day.​

Q: Can recipients get cash?

A: Recipients can withdraw cash over the counter or via usual banking channels from their credited TDB account, even though the remittance itself is processed cashlessly.​

Q: Is cash accepted from senders?

A: Public descriptions stress that the product is designed to be cashless in sending countries, using bank transfers rather than retail cash agents, which helps keep costs down and meet compliance requirements.

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User Testimonaials

User Testimonaials

Studies of seasonal and temporary workers show that users who switch to Ave Pa’anga Pau pay noticeably less for sending money home than those relying [...]
  • Studies of seasonal and temporary workers show that users who switch to Ave Pa’anga Pau pay noticeably less for sending money home than those relying on traditional cash‑based remittance providers, and some report appreciating the direct credit to savings accounts.​
  • Policy and media commentary note, however, that some migrants still choose higher‑cost providers because of habits, perceived convenience of cash, or concerns about exchange‑rate transparency and the need for both sender and recipient to use bank accounts.
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Compliance and Legal Info

Compliance and Legal Info

Ave Pa’anga Pau is not a standalone licensed bank; it is a remittance product operated by Tonga Development Bank, which is supervised as a financial [...]
  • Ave Pa’anga Pau is not a standalone licensed bank; it is a remittance product operated by Tonga Development Bank, which is supervised as a financial institution by the National Reserve Bank of Tonga.​
  • A New Zealand designation notice describes the Ave Pa’anga Pau voucher as a specified financial product for regulatory purposes and links it to Tonga Development Bank, but does not assign a simple consumer‑facing “licence number” for the product itself; the relevant identifiers are TDB’s status as a licensed financial institution in Tonga and its recognition in New Zealand securities and financial‑markets law.
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