Western Union Exploring 'Pilot Settlement Project' With Ripple Labs

Global remittance giant Western Union is reportedly working on a pilot program with distributed payment protocol provider Ripple Labs. The news was first revealed in a tweet by Ripple Labs promoting CEO Chris Larsen's appearance at Global Conference 2015, an annual event held by non-profit think tank the Milken Institute. The pilot was further confirmed by Monica Long, VP of marketing and communications at Ripple Labs, who told CoinDesk that while Western Union is "exploring a pilot project using Ripple", no further details on the initiative were available. Long did, however, suggest that....

Western Union has formally responded to statements suggesting it is taking concrete steps toward using distributed ledger technologies via a partnership with Ripple Labs. Long cited as a technology that could enable more cost-effective cross-border payments, Western Union has, as commentators have noted, what is perhaps one of the more evident vested interests in exploring digital currency offerings. Still, representatives for the Colorado-based company remain tight-lipped about what the proposed project with Ripple Labs would entail. A spokesperson told CoinDesk:

Ripple Labs CEO Chris Larsen sent the digital currency community buzzing this week when he tweeted that Ripple Labs is working with Western Union on real-time payment settlements. Many view such a partnership as a sign of Western Union's willingness to become more active in the digital currency space. The partnership also signifies a growing recognition of Ripple Labs' open protocol that lets people send digital currency across the Internet-based distributed network. Ripple Labs signed an agreement in the fall with two U. S. banks (Cross River Bank in New Jersey and Kansas-based CBW Bank)....

Global money transfer powerhouse Western Union is boldly venturing into the dynamic and rapidly evolving realm of cryptocurrencies, marking a significant and strategic move in its financial landscape. With a storied history of facilitating seamless cross-border transactions, Western Union’s decision to enter the highly-stacked cryptocurrency arena underscores its commitment to innovation and adaptability in an […]

In what could probably be called the surprise of the century, financial services company Western Union says Bitcoin just isn't quite ready for international money transfers - Western Union's big business. A huge surprise, indeed. It all went down at a Western Union conference that took place recently. "We're a long, long way from sending momma in Mexico $240 each month or a Somali family in a refugee camp $200 each month in bitcoin that is held in a wallet for conversion to local fiat currency and spending as needed," said MSB Compliance president Jay Postma. "The infrastructure and market....