Offering Apple Pay as a payment method in the US and later to the UK, Western Union allows customers to conveniently and reliably transfer money whenever they want.
The Western Union Company, a leader in global payment services, activated the Apple Pay option for United States customers who use its mobile app. Customers will be able to send money transfers originating in the United States to more than 200 countries and territories worldwide, including domestic bill payments.
The Western Union announced that it will offer customers in the United Kingdom to pay with Apple Pay for sending money transfers via the app later this year. More regions are planned in the future as the company continues developing its digital segment.
Transferring money via the Western Union app with Apple Pay is as simple as the touch of a finger with Touch ID.
“Today, 60 percent of all Western Union digital money transfer transactions globally are initiated via a mobile device,” said Khalid Fellahi, senior vice president and general manager, Western Union Digital. “By bringing Apple Pay as a payment method in the US and later to the UK, Western Union is delivering an exceptional experience across our mobile platform, allowing our customers to conveniently and reliably move money, whenever they please.”
This new in-app feature is expected to reduce friction that arouse while manually entering payment information. Instead, it will allow consumers to quickly and securely transfer funds at the click of a button.
It is necessary to say that adding Apple Pay may not be enough to significantly drive digital growth due to slow adoption of the service. Only 21.9% of consumers in the US have used Apple Pay while only 18.7% admit that they regularly use it. But even taking into account this fact, Western Union is still interested in investing in its digital capabilities to keep up with changing payment habits, especially if it hopes to take a lead in the remittance space.
Western Union has done a big job expanding its digital footprint. Currently, 37 countries are available for sending money globally via WU.com, users in 18 countries can use the app (five of these apps offer omni-channel choice with digital or cash pay-in) or can transfer funds via multiple banking and digital alliances.
Together with its Vigo, Orlandi Valuta, Pago Facil and Western Union Business Solutions branded payment services, Western Union offers fast and efficient ways to send and receive money around the world, to send payments and to purchase money orders.
Statistics speaks for itself – as of the end of 2016, the Western Union, Vigo and Orlandi Valuta branded services were offered through a combined network of over 550,000 agent locations in 200 countries and territories and over 100,000 ATMs and kiosks, and included the capability to send money to billions of accounts. In 2016, The Western Union Company has totally moved $80 billion of principal between consumers and 523 million business payments as well as completed 268 million consumer-to-consumer transactions worldwide.
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