WESTERN Union, a leader in money transfer and global payment services, and Bank Albilad, one of the fastest growing banks in Saudi Arabia, have recently signed an agreement to launch Western Union's Account-Based Money Transfer (ABMT) service for the first time in the Kingdom. The service offering will enable all Bank Albilad account holders to send money domestically and internationally, through all banking channels. Hatem Sleiman, Western Union's Regional Vice President, Near East, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Sudan, said “Western Union has had a strong, long-standing relationship with Bank Albilad and we are extremely proud to further extend and strengthen it through this agreement to offer the Account-Based Money Transfer Service for the very first time in the Kingdom. The ABMT service is an integral part of our strategy to enhance the usage of electronic channels, as we strive to provide customers with more convenient ways of transferring money.” “Under the leadership of its CEO, Bank Albilad strongly believes in customer service excellence, by understanding and catering to the needs of all segments of our valuable customers in the best way possible at lower costs. Over the years technology has been widely adopted in the Kingdom for various purposes including banking and our customers are increasingly demanding the latest technological banking services and solutions. Our agreement to offer the Western Union ABMT Service is a step towards meeting these requirements and ensuring that our customers are the first to benefit from the latest innovations in retail banking”, said Sami Al Rajhi, Head of Bank Albilad's remittance arm - Enjaz. In 2010, remittances from Saudi Arabia amounted to SR98.2 billion ($26.2 billion) and the World Bank has ranked the Kingdom as the world's second largest remittance-sending countries behind the US. “Saudi Arabia is the biggest market for remittances in the region for Western Union and through this agreement with Bank Albilad we hope to consolidate our market leadership by catering to the customers' need for technology-driven innovative banking services. The sustained financial growth of Bank Albilad, rapid increase in customer base, and our strong ties with the bank over the past few years, made it an ideal choice, as we seek to provide simple, easy and accessible money transfer services to existing and new consumers in the Kingdom”, added Sleiman. The ABMT service will be available to all Bank Albilad customers through Internet banking facilities. Account holders will be able to send money from their accounts for payout at any Western Union Agent location in over 200 countries and territories. The new service will highly benefit Bank Albilad customers through account-based convenience, quick transfer of money anytime, anywhere, and is in accordance with the bank's strategy to value the changing needs and demands of their customers and offer innovative services and solutions that meet these requirements. – SG
