Cincinnati-based Fifth Third Bank has inked a deal with Western Union to provide a global money-transfer service at its 1,300 bank branches spread across 12 states.
Mark Erhardt, senior vice president of retail products for Fifth Third, says the deal with Western Union will help Fifth Third expand beyond its "traditional" banking services:
"Our decision to join Western Union's unparalleled global network supports our ongoing strategy to expand beyond traditional banking services offered at our branches and add to our other non-traditional offerings such as pre-paid cards and the Identity Alert product."
Western Union says the deal falls in line with its money-transfer strategy in North America to "go-to-market," which basically translates into Western Union's new approach to reach new consumers — those with traditional banking accounts.
Stewart A. Stockdale, executive vice president and president of the Americas for Western Union, says Western Union is using the Fifth Third deal to leverage growth into more card-based transactions:
"Whether it's cash, account or card-based, our expanding global money-movement network provides consumers more ways to move money quickly to more places worldwide than any other business."
