Association of Western Union & India Post iconic brands

New Delhi, March 17, 2011: Western Union® Money Transfer, a global leader in money transfer services and Government of India’s Department of Post (India Post) has completed a decade of assisting Indians living and working overseas to send money to their family and loved ones to build better lives and communities.

Western Union and India Post combined has helped transfer US$6.5 billion1 worth of hard earned remittances through its 7,000 strong India Post location network dotted across urban and rural India . A majority of locations are in rural India (55%)2.

“India Post is an integral part of Western Union’s India wide Agent network and the largest Western Union in-country network. The trust placed in two iconic brands for a decade –India Post, a familiar icon that has provided a civic service for communities for centuries and Western Union a global brand with a heritage of 160 years – is unparalleled”, said Anil Kapur Managing Director, South & South East Asia, Western Union.

“On behalf of Western Union, a special salute goes out to the thousands of India Post employees that have helped service millions of money transfers over the last decade. Their ability to interact in person with our consumers sharing their joys and sometimes their hardships, has made this relationship more than a mere milestone”, he said.

India Post is the world’s largest postal network with over 155,000 post offices; with a significant presence across rural India. Western Union has over 400,000 Agent locations across 200 countries and territories.“An efficient and reliable communication network is the lifeline of the nation and plays a crucial role in socio-economic development and the integration of the country. At India Post we strive to exceed the expectations of our consumers and society”, said AS Prasad, Deputy Director General (Financial Services), Department of Posts.“Our 10 year relationship with Western Union has helped us offer a modern, reliable and fast service embedded with our traditional values and ethics.

“Given Western Union’s popularity across rural areas, it has also enabled India Post to also attract new consumers for other services such as mutual funds and insurance offered by India Post”, he said.

Kiran Shetty, Western Union’s Regional Vice President for India added, “Trust is a fundamental trait in all money matters and particularly so when you are transferring hard earned monies that help build the future generations of India. The hallmark of reliability, convenience and speed – is underscored by our collaboration and continues to strengthen.

“The 7,000 strong India Post network offering the Western Union® Money TransferSM service has been a shining example of rural inclusion at play, with over 55% of this network catering to rural consumers. This includes a strong presence in traditional remittance markets such as Kerala and Punjab as well as emerging markets such as Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu among others,” he added.According to the World Bank, India continued to be the largest recipient of remittances in 2010 to the tune of $55bn, owing to the growing Indian Diaspora, strong investment opportunities in India and the growing needs/affluence of middle-class. Western Union helps families of the Indian diaspora back home receive international remittances in an easy, reliable and convenient manner through its nationwide network of more than 63,000 Agent locations.