MasterCard and The Western Union Company have signed a global agreement to make electronic payments, including prepaid cards and money transfers, easier and convenient for consumers around the world.
The partnership expands an existing relationship MasterCard has had with Western Union.
The agreement will involve connecting MasterCard’s processing network and Western Union’s distribution network, which includes 485,000 agents worldwide.
Consumers in over 200 countries will have access to a global network to transfer and load funds onto prepaid cards.
MasterCard president and CEO Ajay Banga said that the primary focus of their global partnership is to enable greater financial inclusion for consumers and provide additional electronic payment options that create efficiencies in their daily lives. They look forward to all of the benefits that their partnership will bring to consumers around the world.
Western Union president and CEO Hikmet Ersek said that this agreement sets the stage to globalize prepaid services. They’re opening up more options for consumers around the world by combining Western Union’s global network of money movement solutions with MasterCard’s world class global electronic payments network.