Apr 2013 Financial News

GKMS appointed Western Union agent in BVI

Apr 10, 2013

Western Union has appointed GraceKennedy Money Services (GKMS) as its remittance service agent in British Virgin Islands (BVI), replacing courier provider DHL.

GraceKennedy now operates in eight territories in the Caribbean. Western Union is a minority partner in GKMS Caribbean, which oversees the Jamaican conglomerate's remittance, cambio and bill-payment companies within the region.

"DHL's contract ended and DHL didn't opt to renew it," Patria-Kaye Aarons, sponsorship and communications manager at GKMS, said Tuesday. "Their contractual arrangement came to an end and Western Union needed an agent and handed it over to GKMS."

GKMS is a subsidiary of the GraceKennedy group. Last year, the bulk of GraceKennedy's J$4 billion pretax profit came from financial services: J$1.65 billion was made from money services, J$649.9 million from banking, and J$401 million from insurance; while J$815 million was made from food and J$131 million from retail.

Several changes are slated to take place in GKMS's money services operations over coming months, according to the media release on the new Western Union market, including added opening hours.

"We found traditionally that Saturdays have proven one of the busiest days in Western Union agent locations in the Caribbean over. The desire for, and anticipation of, being able to have Western Union open on Saturdays in the BVI already suggests it will be a welcomed change here," said Noel Greenland, GKMS senior vice-president of operations, who was quoted in the release.

GKMS will also remove the security fee of US$2.50 previously charged to consumers while continuing to offer rates of as "low as US$8.99 transfer fee".

GKMS already operates in Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, Guyana, Antigua and Barbuda, Anguilla, St Kitts and Nevis, St Vincent and the Grenadines, and Montserrat.


Source:
steven.jackson@gleanerjm.com
Jamaica Gleaner
Wednesday April 10, 2013

http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20130410/business/business3.html