MoneyGram, a cross-border payment platform and a prominent RippleNet partners, has received takeover offer from financial giant Western Union.
An article by Bloomberg published on Tuesday, June 2, reported the news. The terms of the deal offered to MoneyGram is unknown as the matter is not public yet.
The deal, if successful, would combine the two of the biggest money-transfer companies in the United States. According to the person, no decision has been made by MoneyGram International.
MoneyGram International, based in Texas, United States, a cross-border money transfer company to securely and quickly send or receive money. The platform enables family and friends to quickly and affordably send money in more than 200 countries and territories, with over 70 countries now digitally enabled.
During the course of COVID-19 pandemic, the company has experienced a roller coaster ride. Lockdowns and shelter-in-place orders to combat the coronavirus have closed many businesses across the US, including some local branches of MoneyGram.
In June 2019, MoneyGram made a partnership with Ripple Labs to collaborate on cross-border payments and foreign exchange settlements with digital assets. But the efforts to boost digital transaction has not paid well as they accounted for just 18% of its money transfers in the first quarter of 2020.
But since then, things have improved for MoneyGram as in an announcement on May 12, 2020, MoneyGram reported a 81% year-over-year transaction growth for its digital business in April. According to the states, digital transactions accounted for 28% of all money transfer transaction in April. This was a significant growth when compared to Q1 2020. These strong trends also continued in May.
This is not for the first time that MoneyGram is surrounded by acquisition news. In 2017, the Chinese financial services conglomerate, Ant Financial Services Group, also agreed to buy MoneyGram. But the deal was unable to go ahead because of regulatory pushback from national security regulators in the US.
The company has recently made a partnership with Uber to provide drivers and delivery couriers a discount on digital money transfers sent to family and friends.
Western Union, founded in 1851, is a Colorado-based financial service company that provides consumers and businesses with fast, reliable and convenient ways to send and receive money around the world. The company has a market value of about $8.5 billion, with MoneyGram at $155 million.
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