According to the agreement, Western Unions services initially will be available at more than 8,000 Sberbank branches in 2011.
The agreement is also expected to enable Sberbank to largest Western Union banking partner in the region.
The two companies plan to expand the network further when Western Union international money transfers become available for consumers at all Sberbank branches that are integrated into the bank’s BLITZ money-transfer system (more than 9,000 locations in 2,800 cities and residential areas across Russia).
It is expected that the first year of the partnership will be focused on the consumer-to-consumer Western Union money-transfer service at Sberbank branches.
Afterward, the two companies would consider launching account-based money transfer; that is, enabling the bank’s clients to transfer money directly from their bank accounts online to any of the 386,000 Western Union Agent locations in 200 countries and territories around the world.
Sberbank of Russia deputy board chairman Alexander Torbakhov said cooperation with such a large player in the market of international money transfers as Western Union enables the bank to offer bank clients new services and expand activities in the field of international money transfers.
