Start with your operating model, not the feature list
Write down the countries and currencies you send between, the delivery methods you offer, how many branches or agents you run and who approves what. Bring that description to every vendor. Software that fits a different model can look complete in a demo and still leave your staff working around it.
Check the transfer workflow end to end
Follow one transfer from customer capture to payout. Ask how the sender and recipient are recorded, how the fee and exchange rate are shown before confirmation, how the status changes and what staff see when something is held, cancelled or refunded. Each step should leave a record someone can review later.
Look at how corridors are configured
Ask whether fees, limits and delivery methods can be set for each corridor, and whether different methods can use different providers. Check who in your team can change these settings and whether changes are recorded. Corridor rules change often, so configuration should not require a software release.
Test compliance where your reviewers actually work
Ask how sanctions and politically exposed person (PEP) screening is triggered, what a reviewer sees when there is a possible match and how a decision is recorded. The software supports your process; it does not replace your compliance programme or your obligations to your regulator.
Ask how money is recorded, not only how it moves
Finance teams need branch balances, funding records, ledger journals and statements they can trace back to individual transactions. Ask to open the entries behind a balance during the demo. Clarify which reconciliation steps the software performs and which remain with your team and your providers.
Separate software from provider access
Collection, identity-verification and payout providers each need their own onboarding, credentials and acceptance testing. Ask which integrations already exist in code, which would be built for you and what has to happen before each one goes live. Software alone does not give you permission to offer financial services.
Agree the implementation scope in writing
A useful proposal lists the corridors, branches, user roles, integrations and data migration in scope, plus the acceptance checks for each. Pricing for operations software usually depends on that scope, so compare proposals on what is included rather than on a headline number.