Leveraging the new service, its customers can send direct-to-bank money transfers through select retail locations and WU online money transfer portals. The partnership has enabled the US company to reach over 95% of all personal bank accounts in China.
Additionally, WU partnering with Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), has introduced Account-Based Money Transfers service, which allows more than 400 million ICBC customers to divert WU money transfers received from over 200 nations and regions into their bank accounts.
WU president and CEO Hikmet Ersek said, "Western Union’s unique global retail network and recent investments in technology continue to enable the company to expand and attract global and regional business across the industry, including banks, payments networks and mobile operators."
Around 231 million consumer-to-consumer transactions were carried out globally by WU in 2012, moving $79bn of principal between consumers, and 432 million business payments.
Founded in March 2002, China UnionPay operates as an inter-bank transaction settlement system between banking systems and the inter-bank, and owns about 400 domestic and overseas associate members, based in Shanghai.
