Western Union has joined hands with Zūm Rails, an all-in-one payments platform, to power money transfer from Canada to over 200 countries and territories across the globe.

The collaboration integrates Zūm Rails’ APIs with Western Union’s network, leveraging the Interac e-Transfer system for “real-time” remittances.

Consumers can now make money transfers within seconds, with the advent of real-time payments and digital financial services. However, the speed of these transactions is contingent on the underlying payments rails technology that financial institutions adopt, Zūm Rails highlighted.

Despite the availability of new technologies that enable real-time transactions, the process of integrating these systems into their existing frameworks can be resource-intensive, requiring investment in both time and compliance measures, the firm further outlined.

Zūm Rails CEO Miles Schwartz said: “Our work with Western Union reflects a larger trend across the payments industry, defined by real-time money movement as a non-negotiable service for consumers and enterprises alike.”

“Partnerships between traditional financial institutions and fintechs are proving to be a catalyst in accelerating this trend. Western Union is in a unique position to lead the industry forward, leveraging its technological innovation and its deep history in the cross-border remittance industry. We look forward to working with them to support their efforts in delivering an exceptional customer experience.”

A recent survey by Interac, a provider of payment and digital information exchange services, revealed that nearly nine out of ten Canadians have utilised Interac e-Transfer.

In the past 12 months, Canadians have used this service to move approximately $338bn, with the total reaching over $625bn since the onset of the pandemic.

Furthermore, nearly half (49%) of the respondents indicated a growing usage of Interac e-Transfer during this period.

Western Union Canada vice president of Digital and Ecosystem Ranjit Sarai said: “Consumers should be able to send payments anywhere in the world at the same speed as they can with native peer-to-peer applications. Our work with Zūm Rails makes this a reality.”

“That is only part of what we have in store for Western Union customers as we work to bring a number of entirely new digital financial experiences to market, to complement the reliable service they’ve come to expect.”

Recently, Jingle Pay, a fintech company based in the UAE, partnered with Western Union. This collaboration aims to facilitate international remittances into bank accounts and mobile wallets from selected markets.