Susan Gordon, Business Reporter

Christina Gold, chief executive officer of Western Union.

President and Chief Executive Officer of Western Union, Christina Gold, says factored in the renewed partnership with GraceKennedy Limited is the opportunity it presents to go deeper into microlending and small take-up loans in the region.

She mentioned this only four months after it was announced on the international market that Western Union Corporation was considering starting a micro-lending programme to boost its profits.

Gold was speaking at a GraceKennedy's briefing held recently at the local company's Kingston headquarters regarding WU's acquisition of a 25 per cent stake in GraceKennedy's Remittance, Cambio & Bill Payments Business in the Caribbean for J$2 billion.

Ideal partners

She said Jamaica and GraceKennedy made ideal partners to do some testing on the venture, which she is reported internationally as saying represents "a big opportunity" for Western Union.

"For us, the real question will be the risk and the ability to ramp this up around the globe."

Gold raised the issue again during her visit to Kingston.

"We are doing some investigations and are working with the World Bank and we are looking at the customers we have and how with the new arrangement with GK we can test this," Gold told an investors briefing at GraceKennedy's corporate offices.

With GraceKennedy's regional presence in Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, and six other Caribbean countries, plus its Western Union service offerings in more than 230 locations throughout the region, Western Union would have a reasonably wide platform on which to test this new initiative.

The international company already has an advantage with wide knowledge of its customers who use the service and said it would use the information from its customers' friends or family to help determine a borrower's creditworthiness.

Micro-lending involves very small loans to small business operators, the unemployed or poor entrepreneurs.

Queried about its foray into Jamaica, Western Union Chief Financial Officer Scott Scheirman said he was comfortable with the country risk, bolstered by his company's relationship with GraceKennedy.

Jamaica, he said, is seen as a good country to do business.

susan.gordon@gleanerjm.com