A shared commitment to crew welfare
MarTrust and global welfare charity the International Seafarers’ Welfare and Assistance Network (ISWAN) have announced a new partnership connecting financial wellbeing with mental health support for crew members worldwide.
We spoke with Simon Grainge, CEO of ISWAN, and Stuart Gregory, CEO of MarTrust, about why this collaboration matters and how it will help improve everyday life for seafarers.
The human side of seafaring
ISWAN operates a 24/7 multilingual helpline providing practical and emotional support to seafarers and their families, handling around 450 new contacts every month.
Simon Grainge:
“We provide a place where seafarers can talk about things they wouldn’t share with their employer, their crewmates, or even their family. They come to us with everything from simple questions to people experiencing suicidal thoughts; issues like abandonment, financial worries, fatigue, stress, and contractual problems.”
Financial anxiety is one of the most common concerns raised on the helpline.
“Security of livelihood is a big issue for seafarers because they don’t know where their next contract is coming from,” adds Grainge. “For many, the work is a route out of poverty, so these things are crucial.”
Financial wellbeing as part of welfare
For MarTrust, crew welfare begins with giving seafarers more control over their money.
Stuart Gregory:
“There’s a very direct link between the financial wellbeing of the crew and their wider welfare. Crew live difficult lives. They’re away from their families, often on nine-month contracts, travelling around the world. How they manage their money, how they get paid, support their families, and budget. These are all common challenges. If you’ve got three months unpaid between contracts, you need to make sure you don’t spend all your money while you’re at sea.”
Sending money home can also be a challenge.
“If your family’s back in the Philippines, India, or Indonesia, it’s not always easy to send money cost-effectively,” Gregory explains. “Historically, they were often paid in cash, and you could lose a lot through transfer fees. Port call frequency makes a difference too in terms of budgeting. If you call at port every few days, the temptation to spend is higher than if you only dock once a month.”
Digital tools designed for life at sea
MarTrust has developed features within its digital wallet that make everyday money management easier and help seafarers stay in control.
“One of the things crew really asked for was the ability to keep their card balance separate from the balance in their account,” says Gregory. “If they only want to spend $150 while they’re in port, they can load that amount on the card and keep their savings safe in the account.”
Connectivity at sea was another issue.
“We built an auto-transfer feature so crew can pre-set how much they want to send to each beneficiary,” Gregory continues. “As soon as they’re paid, it’s sent automatically, even if they don’t have connectivity. It means the money still gets to the family without delay, while keeping the seafarer in control.”
Another feature developed in response to crew feedback is the ability for seafarers to transfer funds instantly between each other.
“Crew-to-crew payments were one of the most requested additions,” says Gregory. “They make it easy for colleagues to pay each other back on board or send money to a family member who also uses a MarTrust account. It means vessels can operate entirely cash-free, removing the cost and risk of handling cash while giving crew more flexibility.”
For ISWAN, these innovations directly support mental wellbeing.
Simon Grainge:
“Families sometimes contact us because of urgent financial needs, hospital bills, for example, and that’s when the pressure really builds. Giving seafarers reliable, low-cost ways to send money home helps take away a major source of anxiety.”
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How the partnership came together
The collaboration between MarTrust and ISWAN was born from a shared belief that financial and emotional wellbeing are deeply connected.
Simon Grainge:
“We take about 450 new contacts per month, but that’s just a drop in the ocean compared with the 1.8 million seafarers out there. Many who could use our services don’t know about us. Younger seafarers especially, if it’s not on their phone, it doesn’t exist. The partnership with MarTrust gives us a way to reach them digitally at the right moment.”
Stuart Gregory:
“Every month, MarTrust helps ensure 150,000 crew get paid. They log in frequently to check balances, load cards, and send money home. It’s a natural touchpoint, and that’s where we can promote ISWAN’s services. Welfare issues are often top-of-mind when someone’s thinking about their finances.”
The partnership includes a financial contribution from MarTrust to support ISWAN’s helpline and crisis-fund operations, alongside integration of ISWAN’s contact details and resources directly into the MarTrust app.
Learning from each other
Both leaders see the partnership as an opportunity for collaboration and shared insight.
Simon Grainge:
“It’s about learning from each other. The experience MarTrust has with seafarers is different from ours, and that exchange helps us both improve. They can share what they see through their data, and we can provide feedback from the conversations we have with seafarers and their families.”
Stuart Gregory:
“We can learn from ISWAN’s frontline experience, and they can influence how we design our services. That way, what we build genuinely reflects what seafarers need.”
A Stronger Future for Seafarer Wellbeing
The maritime industry faces a shortage of qualified seafarers, and both CEOs believe that welfare will play a central role in attracting and retaining talent.
Stuart Gregory:
“There’s a shortage of seafarers, so retention and recruitment are big priorities. Offering a service like MarTrust helps shipowners support financial wellbeing, which is increasingly seen as part of the wider welfare package.”
Simon Grainge:
“The industry needs to recognise that welfare is essential to attracting the next generation. Seafaring is a tough life. You’re away from your family for long periods, facing stress and fatigue. But people will do a hard job if they’re properly supported.”
Looking Ahead
The first stage of the collaboration, integrating ISWAN’s services into the MarTrust app is already live. Further cooperation planned, including the launch of a new Power BI Dashboard that brings together helpline data and insights from ISWAN on key wellbeing themes such as financial strain, fatigue, isolation, and contractual concerns.
Stuart Gregory:
“We’ve started by including ISWAN’s helpline and resources, but there’s more to come. We’re exploring how we can keep improving financial wellbeing while connecting crew with the right welfare support when they need it.”
Simon Grainge:
“We’re redeveloping how we collect and analyse the information from our helpline so that we can identify key welfare trends. With MarTrust’s support, we’re building a Power BI dashboard that will make those insights visible to the wider industry and help shape better policies and services for seafarers.”
“A good partnership is built on respect and openness,” he adds. “For us, it’s about doing everything we can to make life easier for seafarers, and working with MarTrust helps us do that more effectively.”
“We take about 450 new contacts per month, but that’s just a drop in the ocean compared with the 1.8 million seafarers out there. Many who could use our services don’t know about us. Younger seafarers especially, if it’s not on their phone, it doesn’t exist. The partnership with MarTrust gives us a way to reach them digitally at the right moment.”
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