Tuesday, January 26, 2010

Wells Fargo Adds ExpressSend® Remittance Paying Agent in Mexico and Expands to 8 Additional Latin American Countries



SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) has more than doubled the number of countries that can receive Wells Fargo ExpressSend remittance transactions – expanding to Honduras, Nicaragua, Dominican Republic, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, and Argentina. Additionally, Wells Fargo has added Telecomunicaciones de Mexico (Telecomm Telegrafos) – one of the largest telecommunications companies in Mexico – as a new paying agent. Customers can now remit to an additional 1,560 new payout locations in Mexico, bringing the total payout locations in Mexico to more than 5,500 locations.



“The expansion of our consumer remittance network in Latin America reflects on our long-standing commitment to satisfying all of our customers financial services needs,” said Daniel Ayala, executive vice president and head of Wells Fargo's Global Remittance Services. “Our Hispanic customer base is made of immigrants from a number of Latin American countries. Wells Fargo wants to be the bank of choice for this increasingly important high growth consumer segment.”



Wells Fargo remittance services are economical, convenient and dependable. Customers can send money directly to their beneficiary for one low transfer fee. Customers may also qualify for 50 or 100 percent fee discounts based on their account relationship with Wells Fargo. Customers can send money by signing on to Wells Fargo Online®, by calling 1-800–TO-WELLS or by visiting a Wells Fargo store location.



“Mexico is one of the largest remittance corridors and a key driver for our remittance business,” Ayala said. “Our remittance network expansion with Telecomm Telegrafos will provide our customers with an alternative remittance distribution network that reaches a more diverse set of remittance locations in the Mexican territory.”



“This expansion strengthens competition in Latin America and the Caribbean as the bank’s presence links up with important financial institutions, expands and extends payment networks, offers more competitive fees, and facilitates the opportunity to remittance recipients to use other financial services provided by its partners,” said Dr. Manuel Orozco, Remittances and Development Program, Inter-American Dialogue.
















NEW NETWORK MEMBER BANKS/COUNTRIES

                     
Country   Network Member   Locations   Remittance currency   Available Option   Transfer Fee
Argentina   BBVA Banco Frances  
  • Over 230 branches

  • 650 ATMs

  US Dollars  
  • Account to cash

  • Cash to cash

 
  • $8

  • $10

Bolivia   Banco Mercantil Santa Cruz  
  • Over 60 branches

  • 170 ATMs

  US Dollars  
  • Account to cash

  • Cash to cash

 
  • $8

  • $10

Colombia   BBVA Colombia  
  • Over 470 branches

  • 750 ATMs

  Colombian pesos  
  • Account to cash

  • Cash to cash

 
  • $7

  • $9

Dominican Republic   Banco Hipotecario Dominicano (Banco BHD)  
  • Over 100 branches

  • 190 ATMs

  Dominican Pesos  
  • Account to cash

  • Cash to cash

 
  • $7

  • $9

Ecuador   Banco de Guayaquil  
  • Over 80 branches

  • 660 ATMs

  US Dollars  
  • Account to account / cash

  • Cash to account / cash

 
  • $8

  • $10

Honduras   Banco Financiero Comercial Hondureña (Banco Ficohsa)  
  • Over 80 branches

  • 160 ATMs

  Lempiras  
  • Account to account / cash

  • Cash to account / cash

 
  • $7

  • $9

Mexico (additional outlets)   Telecomunicaciones de México
(Telecomm Telégrafos)

 
  • Over 1,560 locations

  Mexican pesos  
  • Account to cash

  • Cash to cash

 
  • $5

  • $7

Nicaragua   Banpro  
  • Over 50 branches

  • 70 ATMs

  US Dollars  
  • Account to cash

  • Cash to cash

 
  • $8

  • $10

Peru   BBVA Banco Continental  
  • Over 170 branches

  • 450 ATMs

 
US Dollars

 
  • Account to account / cash

  • Cash to account / cash

 
  • $8

  • $10



ADDITIONAL NETWORK MEMBER BANKS/COUNTRIES




Wells Fargo also offers international remittance products to the top seven countries from the U.S. – Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, the Philippines, India, Vietnam, and China. Participating banks include:



  • Mexico – BBVA Bancomer, HSBC Mexico and Banorte

  • Guatemala – Banco Industrial S.A. and Banco de Desarrollo Rural, S.A.

  • El Salvador – Banco Agrícola, S.A. and HSBC Banco Salvadoreño

  • Philippines - Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI)

  • India – ICICI Bank Ltd.

  • Vietnam - Vietnam Bank for Industry and Trade (VietinBank)

  • China - Agricultural Bank of China (ABC)



“We launched Wells Fargo ExpressSend in 2007 and it has proved to be a success for our company,” Ayala added. “We understand the lifelong connection that immigrants have to their extended family and friends in their country of origin and we want to help facilitate that connection by expanding our Wells Fargo ExpressSend remittance service to more countries each day.”



Wells Fargo & Company is a diversified financial services company with $1.2 trillion in assets, providing banking, insurance, investments, mortgage and consumer finance through more than 10,000 stores, over 12,000 ATMs and the internet (wellsfargo.com) across North America and internationally.

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