On December 17, Odilon Almeida, President of Western Union Global Money Transfer, announced that his company was “fully prepared” to work with cryptocurrencies to secure international payments.
Almeida said that Western Union is ready to make maximum use of the blockchain and cryptocurrency technology for its work, as it specializes in international payments and “knows well” what it is.
“Cryptocurrencies can be another widespread option to ensure the exchange of values between people and countries, and if this happens, we are ready for the launch,” said Almeida.
However, he believes that this will not happen immediately since the crypto industry is still at an early stage of development and faces a number of problems that are common for new payment systems. These problems, he said, are related to volatility, management and compliance.
Almeida expressed optimism about the fact that Western Union can contribute to overcoming of these problems, as “allocates significant resources to solve these three problems.”
On the introduction of cryptocurrency on his platform as a payment option, he resolutely said:
“Western Union today is ready to accept any currency. We already have 130 currencies. If one day we realize that “the game is worth the candle,” then, from technology the point of view, this will be just another currency. ”
Western Union is experimenting with the blockchain.
Almeida also said that the potential of technology in the financial services sector is great, and that his company is investing in the study of those applications that are most suitable for its platform.
Almeida also confirmed that WU is conducting “ongoing tests” with Ripple Labs, which has payments based on the blockchain.
