Western Union Announces a Strategic Relationship with Bank Al Bilad.

DUBAI, Riyadh, United Arab Emirates -- Western Union Financial Services Inc., a global leader in money transfer services, today announced a strategic relationship with Bank Al Bilad of Saudi Arabia to provide money transfer services to its customers in Saudi Arabia.

Bank Al Bilad is one of Saudi Arabia's newest and largest banks with 60 locations spread across the Kingdom. Its large customer base will now benefit from Western Union's fast and reliable money transfer service. Mr. Jean Claude Farah, Regional Vice President of Western Union for Middle East, Pakistan and Afghanistan, said: "It is with great pleasure that we welcome Bank Al Bilad into the Western Union Agent network. With an expanding location base and a dedication to serving their customers, we are looking forward to Bank Al Bilad positively contributing to the growth of our business in the Kingdom and further enhancing our position as a leader in the money transfer business."

"Western Union prides itself in helping people get closer to the ones they love. Saudi Arabia has a sizable expatriate population and we are sure that this new relationship with a trusted name like Bank Al Bilad will help us extend our services to a new group of people who are looking for a reliable way to transfer money using a network of more than 271,000 Agent locations in 200 countries and territories worldwide," he said.

Commenting on the recent signing, Mr. Abdullah Almadhi, General Manager Enjaz Banking Services -- Bank Al Bilad, said: "Bank Al Bilad is the newest financial institution in the Kingdom with the largest remittance branch network (Enjaz), and entering into an agreement with Western Union has been the natural choice to provide fast, reliable and secure money transfer services to our customers. Today, we are proud to offer the Western Union service across all our Enjaz branches, and we hope to expand this further in the coming months. Bank Al Bilad joining forces with Western Union shows our commitment towards our valued customers, be it expatriates or nationals, and will provide a vital link to those who seek to transfer funds to friends, family and loved ones within the kingdom and around the world."

Almadhi further added: "Bank Al Bilad has been built on the solid foundations of trust and service commitment. Through Western Union, we have not only found the ideal service provider for quick money transfers, but also an organization that holds to the same principles and values as we do."

Bank Al Bilad is the second Western Union Representative in Saudi Arabia after Saudi American Bank (SAMBA). This new agreement ensures that the total number of Western Union Agent locations in Saudi Arabia now exceeds 90 locations.

About Western Union and First Data

First Data Corp. (NYSE: FDC) is a leading provider of electronic commerce and payment solutions for businesses and consumers worldwide. Serving 4.6 million merchant locations, 1,500 financial institutions and millions of consumers, First Data powers the global economy by making it easy, fast and secure for people and businesses around the world to buy goods and services using virtually any form of payment. The company's portfolio of services and solutions includes credit, debit, private-label, gift and other prepaid card issuing and merchant transaction processing services; money transfer services; money orders; fraud protection and authentication solutions; check guarantee and verification services through TeleCheck; as well as Internet commerce and mobile solutions. Western Union, together with Orlandi Valuta and Vigo, make up one of the world's largest money transfer networks with more than 271,000 Agent locations in more than 200 countries and territories. The company's STAR Network offers PIN-secured debit acceptance at 1.9 million ATM and retail locations. For more information, visit www.firstdata.com.

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