Send money from Switzerland to Ethiopia
The Ethiopian diaspora in Europe sends home regularly, and European NGOs pay Addis staff. A sender in Zurich hits the same wall. Local banks in Ethiopia won't take a direct EUR transfer, and a dollar wire takes days and loses a slice on arrival. There's a faster route, and it runs through your recipient's own Grey account.
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Sending dollars to Ethiopia from Switzerland
Grey doesn't pay out to Ethiopian bank accounts in local currency, from Zurich or anywhere else. What it does instead is often better for this corridor. Your recipient opens a free Grey account in Ethiopia. You send dollars to their GreyTag from Switzerland. The money lands in seconds with no fee.
They spend it on a Grey virtual card anywhere Visa or Mastercard is accepted in Addis Ababa, hold it in USD, or convert to USDC and withdraw. The Ethiopian diaspora in Europe sends home regularly, and European NGOs pay Addis staff.
How sending to Ethiopia works
Sign up
You open Grey in Switzerland with your passport or residence permit. Your recipient opens Grey in Ethiopia with their passport or local ID. Both take a few minutes.
Fund
Fund by SEPA transfer in euros from a Swiss bank. Most top-ups credit within minutes, and the EUR sits on Grey until you convert it for Addis Ababa.
Send
Type the recipient's GreyTag, choose the dollar amount, and confirm the EUR to USD rate. That's the whole process from Zurich.
What this route costs
Card payments in Addis Ababa convert at the point of sale. Your recipient sees the exact dollar amount deducted for each purchase, at the African Union and ECA or a corner shop. You see the EUR cost of what you sent from Zurich.
Rate fixed at confirmation
The EUR to USD rate you accept in Zurich is the rate applied. Whatever happens afterwards, the dollar balance your recipient receives doesn't change.
For a monthly allowance in Addis Ababa, that means the same dollar figure every time.
Why a Grey-to-Grey transfer beats a wire here
A dollar wire from Zurich to a bank in Addis Ababa takes days, attracts a receiving fee, and then converts at the bank's rate. A GreyTag transfer lands in seconds, costs nothing, and your recipient spends dollars directly at the African Union and ECA or anywhere else. For anyone living in Ethiopia on money from abroad, the card is the bank.
What your recipient gets in Ethiopia
Dollars in their own Grey account, instantly, sent from Zurich. They spend on a Grey virtual card at the African Union and ECA, Addis Ababa University, shops, restaurants and online. They can also hold USD, EUR or GBP balances, or convert to USDC and withdraw to a wallet of their choice.
Grey virtual card
Rain Visa or Miden Mastercard, accepted across Addis Ababa and online.
Hold in dollars
Keep the balance in USD and spend as needed. No forced conversion.
Stablecoin withdrawal
Convert to USDC and withdraw to an external wallet when local cash is needed.
How to fund
Swiss senders fund in euros by SEPA from UBS, PostFinance or Raiffeisen. Grey doesn't hold a franc balance, so the euro account is the working balance. Convert to dollars, then the GreyTag step to Addis Ababa is free.
From UBS, PostFinance, Raiffeisen or any Swiss bank with a euro account
SEPA transfer in euros from a Swiss bank, credited in minutes.
From foreign clients
USD, EUR or GBP paid into Grey converts to USD in one step.
From GreyTag
Another Grey user in Switzerland or abroad can fund you instantly.
A monthly allowance to Addis Ababa is simplest with a standing balance and the recipient's GreyTag saved.
Who sends from Switzerland to Ethiopia
Students
Allowances for students at Addis Ababa University and regional institutes.
Conference travellers
Topping up your own Grey card before an AU summit or ECA event.
Diaspora families
Support for relatives in Addis, Bahir Dar, Hawassa and Dire Dawa.
AU and UN staff
Family support for those posted to the African Union, ECA and agencies in Addis.
Geneva and Zurich host international organisations, NGOs and banks whose staff send worldwide. On this route it's mostly people supporting someone who's physically in Addis Ababa: students at Addis Ababa University, patients, posted staff and long-stay residents. All of them can hold a Grey account there.
Why Grey for Switzerland to Ethiopia
Ethiopia isn't a bank-payout corridor for Grey, from Zurich or anywhere else. It's a Grey-to-Grey corridor, and for students at Addis Ababa University, patients and posted staff in Addis Ababa that's the faster, cheaper option anyway.
Rate and fee shown before you convert in Zurich. Dollars land in your recipient's Grey account in Addis Ababa instantly. No local bank payout on this route.
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