Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE: WFC) has expanded its ExpressSend remittance network through an agreement with Mexico City-based Banco Azteca, S.A. de C.V., a financial services company owned by Grupo Elektra.
Through this agreement, Wells Fargo will extend its consumer remittance payout network distribution to Banco Azteca and Elektra's 2,461 locations in Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras and Peru. Wells Fargo ExpressSend customers now have more than 40,200 remittance payout locations to send money to 15 countries in Latin America and Asia. Within the last year alone, Wells Fargo added 12,600 payout locations, a 46 percent increase.
To help celebrate the expansion, Wells Fargo Global Remittance Services is offering a fee waiver for customers who open an ExpressSend service agreement linked to a Wells Fargo account and send money through Banco Azteca or Elektra through April 31, 2012.
Wells Fargo has one of the largest number of payout locations for a U.S. bank-managed remittance service, creating added convenience for its customers and their family and friends. In 2011, the total value remitted was more than $1.8 billion.
With this expansion in Mexico alone, Wells Fargo is increasing its distribution network to more than 12,400 payout locations, giving Wells Fargo one of the largest payout networks in the country - now including Banco Azteca and Elektra retail stores. In 2011, Wells Fargo transferred more than $1 Billion to Mexico through Wells Fargo ExpressSend. Wells Fargo experienced a 23% growth in overall dollar volume to Mexico in 2011 compared to 2010. The expanded distribution is attributed to the increasing needs of Wells Fargo customers to have access to alternative options.
"By joining forces with Banco Azteca and Elektra, we are offering our customers one of the largest number of payout locations in Mexico and offering added convenience in Guatemala, Honduras and Peru," said Daniel Ayala, executive vice president and head of Wells Fargo's Global Remittance Services. "In Mexico, Banco Azteca has the third largest branch network and Elektra is the specialty retailer leader in Latin America, making it easier and more convenient for our customers to send money to their family and friends in their home country."
"The alliance with Banco Azteca and Elektra provides greater access to Latin American immigrant clients of Wells Fargo to use one of the largest payment networks in Latin America," added Dr. Manuel Orozco, Remittances and Development Program, Inter-American Dialogue. "This network facilitates senders to get closer to their relatives, as well as to provide a new outlet for remittance recipients to access financial services."
Elektra and Banco Azteca provide convenience to customers remitting to Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras and Peru as they have presence in strategic locations where traditional banks are not accessible nor have strong presence. Most of Elektra and Banco Azteca locations also have extended hours of operation and are open 365 days a year.