MoneyGram is branching out beyond international cash pickup services to digital account-to-account transfers across borders.

The international peer-to-peer payments capability reminiscent of Venmo or Zelle is made possible through a partnership with payment system Visa Direct, the companies confirmed this month.

Youri Bebic, global head of product and innovation at MoneyGram, told Bank Innovation the new service would allow MoneyGram to expand its global presence.

“Historically, the majority of our business was cash-to-cash transactions, but the fastest-growing vertical we have right now is actually cash-to-account and account-to-account,” he said. “This allows us to grow our presence in a vertical that was not necessarily what we were known for.”

Although MoneyGram customers could previously send cash to MoneyGram locations around the world for near-instant pickup, account-to-account transfers would take at least one business day. The company rolled out account-to-account transfers for U.S. customers in September. 

MoneyGram customers can now send money to bank accounts through Visa Direct by using the company’s website or mobile app. To send money, customers need to add their 16-digit debit card number associated with the accounts.

Although Visa Direct is providing the payment rails, the service works with non-Visa cards as well. MoneyGram’s previous account transfer service wasn’t available on weekends, but the new service is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The service is currently live in the Philippines and Spain, but the goal is to expand to between 15 and 30 countries within the next few months.

MoneyGram has been trumpeting Visa Direct as a customer acquisition tool this year. According to the company’s third-quarter earnings presentation, more than half of the company’s Visa Direct users are new customers.

During a call with investors in October, MoneyGram CEO Alex Holmes said the partnership could help the company move beyond its traditional products and become a leader in cross-border account transfers.

“I think the U.S.-to-U.S. domestic walk-in product is under a lot of pressure,” he said during the call. “I think that’s largely been driven by not only the cost of the service on the walk-in space, but I think also the alternative solutions that consumers have in the P2P [payments market].”

See also: Walmart Partners with MoneyGram to Launch International Money Transfer Service Walmart2World

Despite the new international services, MoneyGram faces tough competition from other cross-border payment companies. This week, TransferWise announced it would be using Visa Direct to power payments to Spain. WorldRemit and Remitly both offer international transfers into bank accounts. According to an Aite Group study released in August, MoneyGram actually experienced a 5% decline in transaction volume between 2015 and 2018.

Talie Baker, senior analyst at Aite Group, told Bank Innovation modern, digital payments is a smart move by MoneyGram, but it might not result in instant rewards. “I think it will be some years out before we see mass adoption of this payment method for remittances,” she said. “I’m not sure if this will really take off in the developing world because most consumers do not have debit cards and prefer to pick up cash.”

Bank Innovation Ignite, which will take place on March 2-3 in Seattle, is a must-attend industry event for professionals overseeing financial technologies, product experiences and services. This is an exclusive, invitation-only event for executives eager to learn about the latest innovations. Request your invitation.