Nigeria Is One of the Most Globally Connected Countries, Says Western Union

Western Union Moved Money into Nigeria from More Than 195 Countries and Territories in 2015

LAGOS, Nigeria, 03 November 2016,-/African Media Agency (AMA)/- Nigeria is one of the most connected countries in the world when it comes to receiving and sending money, according to The Western Union Company, a global leader in global payment services. Western Union has operated in Nigeria for 20 years.

More than 195 countries and territories sent money into Nigeria, and 160 received money from Nigeria in 2015 reflecting the extraordinary global connections brought about by the rise in migration of Nigerians to many parts of the world.

Regional Vice President of Western Union Africa Aida Diarra said, “It is an honor to have served Nigerians for the past 20 years and connect them to and from nearly every corner of the world, moving the money that funds education, healthcare, everyday living and the dreams and aspirations of their families”.

Nigeria is the fifth largest remittance receiver globally, according to the World Bank. Migration destinations have remained steady since a decade ago, according to Western Union's own trend analysis. The US, the UK, Italy, Canada, Germany, Australia, France and Netherlands continued to be the favorite destinations while United Arab Emirates and Malaysia moved to the top 10, replacing Switzerland and Spain.

“The Nigerian spirit of hard work and resilience can be found around the world across all economic spheres. Western Union recognizes that, at the start and end of every transaction are two people, and they rely on each other, just as much they rely on us to move their money reliably. It is this dual belonging that remains at the heart of our innovation to make it easy for Nigerians to send or receive money,” Diarra added.

Western Union bridges geographical gaps by diversifying the options to send and receive money with reliability, convenience, and speed. From a single location with the First Bank of Nigeria in the heart of Lagos in 1996, Western Union has expanded its walk-in retail Agent location count to more than 5,200*, with a presence in every one of Nigeria's 36 states.

The company's channel diversification focus also allows Nigerians to receive money into 2.2 million mobile wallets and into more than 50 million bank accounts. More than 20 majority-owned Nigerian businesses form the foundation of an Agent network that connects Nigerians no matter what distance exists between them and the world.

*: as of June 30, 2016

Distributed by African Media Agency (AMA) on behalf of Western Union.

About Western Union

The Western Union Company (NYSE: WU) is a leader in global payment services. Together with its Vigo, Orlandi Valuta, Pago Facil and Western Union Business Solutions branded payment services, Western Union provides consumers and businesses with fast, reliable and convenient ways to send and receive money around the world, to send payments and to purchase money orders. As of June 30, 2016, the Western Union, Vigo and Orlandi Valuta branded services were offered through a combined network of over 500,000 agent locations in 200 countries and territories and over 100,000 ATMs and kiosks, and included the capability to send money to over a billion accounts. In 2015, The Western Union Company completed 262 million consumer-to-consumer transactions worldwide, moving $82 billion of principal between consumers, and 508 million business payments. For more information, visit www.westernunion.com.

Contacts
Western Union Africa
Khalid Baddou
+212 522 42 84 02
Khalid.Baddou@westernunion.com

Hopscotch Africa
Samia Benjelloun
+212 5 22 25 91 50
sbenjelloun@hopscotchafrica.com

Western Union U.S.
Sarah Meske
+1 303 250-9102
Sarah.meske@westernunion.com

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