Ant Financial buys MoneyGram for $880 million
Moneygram goes Ant Financial way
Alibaba’s affiliate Ant Financial is splashing out $880 million for money transfer operator MoneyGram International. This is Ant Financial’s first acquisition of a US-listed company.
“This gives us a very attractive businesses that’s already quite engaged with a substantial consumer base in the US [2.4 billion bank and mobile accounts],” Douglas Feagin, head of Ant Financial’s global operations, told Bloomberg.
“Remittance is a great way for us to build a presence around US consumers.”
MoneyGram enables consumers and businesses send cash worldwide, generating revenue from transaction fees and spreads on foreign-exchange rates. It is one of the largest long-established players in the global remittance space alongside Western Union.
These two incumbents are facing increasing competition from the likes of WorldRemit, TransferWise, Xoom, TransferGo, TransferTo and a multitude of other digital newcomers.
