Western Union
Undoubtedly the largest money transfers company in the world, Western Union has a long history of dealing with every aspect of communications since its inception in 1851. Although the business has many different sectors now, it still moves around $80bn of its customers’ and clients’ money every year.
Based in the US, Western Union has offices worldwide as well as an extensive global reach with its agents, servicing parts of the world that its competitors simply cannot. It has increasingly been seen as the main way that money is transferred between the developed and developing world.
PayPal
Founded in 1998, PayPal is perhaps the best-known e-wallet business in the world, using a peer-to-peer transfer system. This process revolts against the traditional international money transfers process, whereby money is deposited in banks and faces the risk of coming with related costs. With an extensive global reach and international brand awareness, PayPal is the main choice of customers wishing to make online cross-border payments without using a conventional money transfer company.
With headquarters in the US, PayPal has offices all over the world and has a history of acquiring other smaller money transfer companies to boost its reach even further.
Western Union Features
PayPal Features
One of the largest financial companies in the world
App on iOS and Android can be used to send money to bank accounts, mobile wallets or agents for cash pickup
Over 500,000 agent locations around the world
A well-respected company operating for over 160 years
Rating of ‘excellent’ on Trustpilot from over 16,000 reviews
Huge social media presence with over 10 million likes on Facebook
Send money via the website, mobile apps or in-person agents
High limits of USD 50,000 when transferring to countries including the UK
24/7 customer service by phone
Super-fast delivery option on the day of transfer
Money transferable from over 200 countries
Not all payment options available in every country
Sending to some countries can be expensive
Exchange rate margins are not transparent
Varying tariff plans available.
Extensive integration.
Developer Tools.
Universal payment system.
Problems with account reliability.
Poor customer support.
Not intended for high-risk business.
The relatively high cost of services.
Price Comparison
Western Union may offer better rates than conventional banks when it comes to international money transfers, but by no means is it the industry leader in this respect. Due perhaps to its huge size, Western Union is not always the most competitive when it comes to fees and currency exchange rates. However, due to the fact that it reaches parts of the world that others do not, it could be its usability and accessibility that endows Western Union with its worth.
PayPal is, in a way, the ‘Western Union of e-wallets’. Its position in the peer-to-peer transfer industry is cemented at the top, but there are criticisms that its deposit and transfer fees are usually higher than its competitors. Again, the reputation and reach of PayPal is probably the main reason why it remains such a popular platform – even with its relatively high costs and complicated pricing structure.
International Presence
Although it might seem slightly unfair to compare Western Union and PayPal, as they represent two very different areas of the international money transfers industry, the similarity between the two companies in their own fields is noticeable. Western Union is the biggest money transfer in the world, providing a service in over 200 countries and the ability to handle over 150 currencies – the most in the business.
PayPal allows its customers to send money abroad from virtually everywhere in the world – something that some of its e-wallet competitors cannot. But there is a downside in that PayPal only deals in around 30 currencies even though its reach is the main reason for its continued dominance. A true digital business, PayPal is available virtually wherever there is a Wi-Fi signal.
Ease of Use
Whether it comes to physically visiting one of their many agent offices across the world or completing an international money transfer online, customers continue to use Western Union more than any other company. With such a large operation, it is perhaps surprising that there is not more negativity surrounding Western Union – although it does concentrate on smaller amounts of money compared to some of its competitors.
The usability of the intuitive PayPal app, as well as the website, has made it the number one platform for peer-to-peer money transfers, especially concerning smaller amounts of money both domestically and internationally. The speed of transaction is a definite advantage compared to other money transfer methods and the reach of PayPal is second to none.
OFX provides secure and speedy international money transfers to over 300,000 people in 55 currencies at better-than-bank rates.
Average of the top US Banks costs as compiled by our own FXC Intelligence group
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