Western Union 2006 Annual Report Download - page 14

Dear Fellow Shareholders,
The familiar yellow and black signs of Western Union have
become the international icon for quick, reliable and convenient
money transfer. Western Union is one of the easiest ways
for families and friends to send money and stay connected
anywhere in the world.
This is precisely why I’m so proud to work for this company.
In fact, any one of us can tell you that there is no other
feeling that can compare with knowing the difference we
make in the lives of so many people. Again, it all comes
down to the relationships we’ve established over many
years. We take pride in being close to our consumers.
We speak their languages. We live in their neighborhoods.
And we share their cultures. We are a significant part of
each other’s lives.
As a result, I believe our agents and employees are
more like ambassadors. They are ambassadors of trust.
Ambassadors of responsibility. And ambassadors of hope.
They are the living, breathing manifestation of who we
are as a company and everything we stand for: Integrity.
Partnership. Opportunity. Passion. Teamwork.
A DEFINING YEAR FOR EMPLOYEES, CONSUMERS
AND SHAREHOLDERS ALIKE
2006 saw the tireless efforts of an entire organization pre-
paring for life as an independent public company. And on
October 2, The Western Union Company began trading on
the NYSE under the ticker symbol WU. In reaching this day
we crossed several significant milestones including: raising
$3.5 billion in debt financing, completing a move to global
headquarters in Denver, Colorado, recruiting a Board of
Directors and establishing a world-class infrastructure.
We also delivered the financial expectations we set,
with overall revenues growing 12% to $4.5 billion, operat-
ing income of $1.3 billion and operating cash flow of $1.1
billion. Furthermore, 2006 was a year of operating high-
lights. We increased our global footprint to nearly 300,000
agent locations in over 200 countries and territories, when
just five years ago the agent network was merely 120,000
agent locations, with more than one-third of those being
in the United States. We grew our Gold Card program to
8 million active cards, up from just 1.5 million in 2003.
And on December 15, 2006 — our busiest day ever — we
successfully handled over 2 million transactions.
We divide our business into two segments: consumer-
to-consumer (C2C) and consumer-to-business (C2B). We
handled nearly 150 million C2C transactions in 2006,
accounting for more than 80% of our overall revenue and
generating more than $3.7 billion in revenue. C2B com-
prises nearly 15% of our revenue at $636 million. In this
segment we processed nearly 250 million transactions.
This financial and operational performance is a
result of our execution on our long-standing strategic
objectives:
1. Build our brands and enhance our
consumers’ experience
2. Develop consumer convenience and choice
3. Explore new service offerings
4. Expand and diversify global distribution
We are incredibly fortunate to have begun our life as
an independent public company with strong financial
performance and a leading position in a thriving global
business. Yet I think there are still parts of the world that
are really underserved. So we’ve set ambitious targets
for the immediate future, like increasing our presence
and market position in rapidly growing markets like
Asia, the Middle East and India, and expanding our
C2B segment outside of the U.S. With the strength of
the management team and the 5,900 Western Union
employees behind me, I am confident our investments
will continue to increase shareholder value and put an
even greater focus on our consumers, our business strate-
gies and our growth initiatives.
LOYALTY THAT TRANSCENDS AGE, RACE, GENDER
AND NATIONALITY
Western Union is constantly building its brand and
enhancing our consumers’ experience. Consequently,
many of those who use our services do so frequently, as
they understand that Western Union is the catalyst that
helps improve the quality of life for millions of families
worldwide. So at a time when people are pursuing
opportunities around the world, we welcome the chance
to be the faithful connection that keeps them close to
their own homes. Could there be a greater or more
rewarding responsibility?
Our consumers come to us for a variety of services
because they know we are committed to meeting their
needs. In the end, we know it’s about so much more than
money. It’s about what that money does for people. It’s
about bringing a truly global knowledge and scale to local
communities everywhere. It’s about taking responsibility.
This loyalty I speak of exists for four reasons. The
first is our global network of 300,000 agent locations.
WESTERN UNION 2006 Annual Report 12