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Eurogiro News
Editor-in-Chief: Michel Stuijt
Production & subscription manager:
Hanne S. Basset
[email protected]
Final editing: September 2013
ISSN: 1727-7450
1 – 3 October 2013
PostExpo 2013 in Vienna,
Austria
24 – 25 October 2013
Euromed Postal 2013 in Marseille,
France
Eurogiro is a global payments community. We
connect posts, banks and other payment handlers
and facilitate a member-driven cooperation to
create business opportunities for our members.
Our network carries payment transfers of all kinds.
Eurogiro accepts no legal responsibility for
consequences that may arise from use of this
publication. No part of this publication may be
reproduced without the written consent of Eurogiro.
Eurogiro News is a magazine for the promotion
of information ideas and knowledge within the
Eurogiro community and is published quarterly by:
Eurogiro A/S
Telegade 1, 1.
DK – 2630 Taastrup
Denmark
www.eurogiro.com
3 – 6 December 2013
World Bank Payment Infrastructure
Meeting in Shanghai, China
Activity Calendar 2013
Postal organisations can capitalise on money transfers
By Declan Daly, Western Union, Vice President Europe, Network Agents
Today, traditional postal services are an indus-
try at a crossroads, facing a large number of
challenges and opportunities. As they adapt to
a difficult trading environment, postal organi-
sations have the opportunity to innovate and
embrace new ways of generating income.
The on-going trend seen in Western Europe
is one of postal organisations looking to ex-
ternalise their services to other partners. Typi-
cally, the village post office closes down and
a reduced post office service is offered in the
grocery store next door. And we are increa-
singly seeing a second trend: the privatisation
of postal organisations – as is currently taking
place in Romania and Portugal.
Against this backdrop of financial pressure,
it is only natural that postal organisations
examine alternative methods by which
they can make money. Indeed, the major
income-generators for postal services are
now parcels (largely thanks to the rise of
e-Commerce) and financial services. The rise
of financial services within postal services
has been – and continues to be – a window
of opportunity. Postal services are seen by
consumers as a safe and stable place to store
their money. The long history and established
retail presence of many postal organisations
also contributes to the trust that consumers
place in them. In addition, the market for re-
mittances has grown due to strong migration
patterns, both between and within countries.
Migration numbers continue to rise, meaning
that the global market for remittances is grow-
ing steadily, year-on-year, at a rate that few
industries could rival. All of this provides a tre-
mendous opportunity for postal organisations,
as they have the retail network necessary to
provide an excellent service to money transfer
customers.
This is why, through their agent contracts,
Western Union can provide value to postal
organisations. Western Union’s offer is one of
comprehensive knowledge and experience
of the infrastructure, systems and checks that
must be in place in order to deliver a money
transfer service. Western Union software is
installed at the postal organisation’s terminals,
and they offer an integration of the Western
Union online platform, too. This is all comple-
mented by the huge network maintained
by the postal services in order to reach all
customers within their remit.
Western Union’s services also run beyond
basic money transfers, to provide capability
in mobile payments, prepaid cards and online
payments. This model has been a success in
Europe. In Germany, for example, Western
Union more than doubled its network of Agent
locations at Postbank Finance Centers and
Deutsche Post outlets from 2,600 to 5,600 in
July of this year. This increase was driven by
rising demand for remittance services as
the strong German economy drew in new
Declan Daly,
[email protected]
migrants. Turning to the customer – typically
someone with a low-to-medium-sized income
and little desire for sophisticated financial
services products offered by big banks – postal
organisations can match their needs exactly.
In just minutes, customers can send money
from a bank account or indeed from an ATM,
to an increasingly large network across the
world. The recent growth trend in intra-regional
customers – those who migrate and send mo-
ney home from within the same country – can
also benefit from a widened network of Agents
via postal services. In the case of a cash emer-
gency – or even just a missed birthday – family
members could transfer money in just minutes
from their local postal organisation.
The customers find themselves able to
make easy, quick and secure money transfers
from locations increasingly close to home
to an enormous network of partners across
the world. The postal service increases its
revenues and capitalises on the opportunities
brought by an increased flow of customers.
Western Union, meanwhile, moves closer to
its goal of allowing customers better access to
their money transfer service in order to be able
to send money without hassle, stress or
a prolonged wait.
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