About Us

We help people and businesses move money for better—better communities, better economies, and a better world.

Our Mission

We believe that when money moves freely, good things happen. A business grows. A child goes to college. Emergency aid goes where it’s needed.

 

We help people move their money to make good things happen.

Technology Pioneers

From our earliest beginnings, Western Union has advanced technology to connect people — always staying focused on bringing people closer to the places and loved ones that matter most to them, in good times and bad.

Technology Pioneers

From our earliest beginnings, Western Union has advanced technology to connect people — always staying focused on bringing people closer to the places and loved ones that matter most to them, in good times and bad.

The 10-year-old Western Union Telegraph Company completes the first transcontinental telegraph line and begins carrying messages from one end of North America to the other.

The company introduces its money transfer service, enabling people and businesses to send and receive money anywhere along its extensive telegraph network.

The Dow Jones Railroad Average stock market index for the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) was created, with Western Union included as one of the original 11 companies.

Western Union offers the first Charge Card to consumers.

Western Union begins offering inter-city commercial microwave service, making it one of the world’s first wireless telecoms.

on Valentine’s Day, Western Union introduces the Candygram, including a box of chocolates along with a telegram.

America’s first, the WESTAR fleet of geosynchronous communications satellites begins operation, carrying Western Union telegram, mailgram, and Telex traffic. The company also leases bandwidth to other firms for video, voice, and data.

Having shifted its focus from communications to cross-border money transfer, Western Union becomes a publicly traded company on January 26. The next day, the company sends its last telegram.

Western Union now offers money transfer services to every country on Earth except Iran and North Korea, combining a 500,000+ Agent retail network with a digital platform averaging 24 transactions each second.

In over 200 countries and territories

150 million retail and digital customers worldwide

Payout available into billions of bank accounts and wallets worldwide

Approximately 600,000 Agent locations around the globe

What we value

From our earliest beginnings, Western Union has put technology to work connecting people. As technology has advanced, so have we—but always with our focus on connecting people with the places and loved ones that matter most to them, in good times and bad.

WU Foundation

The Western Union Foundation helps underserved populations connect to the global economy through the power of education. To date, the Foundation has worked to move more than $120 million to improve the lives of more than 940,000 people in 137 countries, including educational initiatives, STEM scholarships, and disaster and humanitarian relief for communities in crisis. The Western Union Foundation is a separate §501(c)(3) recognized United States charity.

Learn more

Leadership

Our diverse leadership team remains true to our vision and values, putting customers’ evolving needs at the center of our innovation and holding up trust and convenience as the hallmarks of our business.

Leadership