Western Union Extends Bank Account Payouts In China Market

The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) along with Du Xiaoman Financial (formerly fintech Baidu (NASDAQ:BIDU) Finance) and its network of bank partners has introduced Western Union international money transfers, which would be paid out in real time into more bank accounts in China. Thus, this extension covers more bank account holders in the country.

Account payouts of Western Union international fund transfers can be directed through the Du Xiaoman Financial mobile app, which would benefit more than 150 million app users. Apart from real-time transactions, customers are likely to gain traction from the 24/7 convenience via this application.

Global customers can use Western Union’s digital services across 75 countries and territories or the walk-in Agent network in 200 plus countries and regions to make an international money transfer. Registered Du Xiaoman financial mobile app users have to key in the bank account details for receiving real-time funds into their accounts. This allows them to accept up to $70,000 per transaction.

This strategic action further highlights the company’s capability to partner with the growing base of national and international tech leaders by strengthening its core assets, such as global settlement feature, wide-spread network, compliance, etc.

Last month, it tied up with City Express to enable business-to-consumer (B2C) cross-border transfer of funds in Japan.

The collaboration with City Express, one of the leading remittance entities in Japan, will enable global used-car enthusiasts to buy from BE FORWARD, one of Japan’s leading used-car exporters. The company constantly forges alliances to expand its reach and boost its portfolio.

Remittance in China

With this expansion, Western Union has further penetrated the evolving China market. Per the World Bank, China was the world’s second-largest remittance receiver in 2018 with $67 billion.

Western Union’s impressive cross-border, cross-currency money movement bodes well for the long haul. It is constantly putting in efforts to enhance its demographic build-up and eyeing the promising economies of China and India where the remittance market still remains untapped yet hold ample opportunities for the industry players.

As of Sep 30, 2019, the company’s network consisted of more than 550,000 retail agent locations providing branded services in above 200 countries and territories.

Shares of this Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) company have soared 50.1% in a year's time, outperforming its industry's surge of 44.5%.

Stocks to Consider

Investors interested in the finance sector might consider better-ranked stocks like FleetCor Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:FLT) , AXA Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH) and Global Payments Inc. (NYSE:GPN) .

FleetCor Technologies offers commercial payment solutions in North America, Latin America, Europe and Australasia. This Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) stock delivered a positive earnings surprise of 2.1% over the preceding four quarters. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

AXA Equitable Holdings works as a diversified financial services entity. The company’s earnings beat estimates in the trailing four quarters by 2.4%, on average. It holds a Zacks Rank of 2.

Global Payments provides payment technology and software solutions for card, electronic, check and digital-based payments. This Zacks #2 Ranked company’s earnings topped estimates in the last four quarters by 2.4%, on average.

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