(6 April 2016 – Global) Western Union Business Solutions launched a new service focusing on remittances for small and medium enterprises (SMEs): WU Edge.
The launch came earlier this week at payment conference Money20/20 in Copenhagen.
The move will see Western Union compete in a territory dominated by e-commerce giants Amazon and Alibaba.
Upon launch later this month, Edge will allow customers to make payments in more than 130 currencies in over 200 countries and territories, leveraging Western Union’s scale and reach. The company claims direct access to over one billion bank accounts.
Edge will be available in near-realtime service for 22 currencies on 11 April in six markets: Canada, Singapore, Australia, New Zealand, the US and UK. According to Western Union, the service will be real-time for 49 countries within a few months after launch. Additionally, the platform will provide insights and analytics to help businesses navigate foreign exchange risks and opportunities.
“WU Edge technology will enable hundreds of thousands of businesses across the world to easily engage in global trade, potentially enabling them to grow, invest and deliver the jobs of the future. We view ourselves as business partners to our SME customers and we are proud to offer this platform to them,” said Kerry Agiasotis, President of Western Union Business Solutions.
“The WU Edge option helps build on our leadership position in global payments. For the first time, we will be able to connect business buyers and sellers on a single B2B platform that powers real-time connections and payments across the globe,” concluded Agiasotis.