It cost him about 1% to buy the coins and then about 5% on the third party cash pickup fees. This might sound big (six percent is about the global average of sending to the PH) but considering the amount sent across borders ($6.00~), this would be impractical with any other method available today.
So-called experts will argue that this is the same amount as the average remittance cost of sending money to the Philippines using traditional channels, therefore bitcoin remittance is redundant and just makes things more complicated and not cheaper for the user.
What those numbers don't tell is that 6% is the average number for a $200 remittance. The smaller the amounts, the higher these fees become. I don't even think it is possible to send $6 internationally and have it picked up in cash within minutes. Maybe it is, but expect to pay more than $6 in fees for that.
When workers abroad can remit money to their loved ones back home in real time and in small amounts, it eliminates a lot of problems like misappropriation of funds and risks of holding more cash than needed. They can even directly pay their bills or buy mobile airtime credits as well.
This is what bitcoin is all about: making things considered unfeasible or even impossible to do a reality. Sending $6.00 across the world, converted to local currency, within minutes, all from a simple web or mobile app.
Ideally they should not need to convert to fiat, but we're a long way from there. For now, this is a solid use-case for what Bitcoin can do right now.
Disclaimer: I am one of the founders of
www.Rebit.ph, the company that facilitated this transaction.
