Wells Fargo Reports Record Remittance Growth in 2011

Wells Fargo & Co. says its remittance transaction volume grew at a record pace of 27% in 2011 over the prior year, thanks in part to substantial growth on the East Coast where the bank has largely finalized its conversions of former Wachovia Corp. branches.

Wells bought Wachovia during the financial crisis and last year signaled interest in expanding its remittance services to former Wachovia customers.

The total dollar value of remittances grew 22% in the fourth quarter of 2011 from a year earlier, with more than a third of that growth coming from Wachovia legacy areas, the bank said in a press release on Thursday. The former Wachovia states represented 16% of the total dollar volume growth for 2011.

"The addition of 17 remittance network members and 8,200 payout locations combined with our cross-sell focus in the legacy Wachovia markets in the East Coast has had a significant impact on our growth," Daniel Ayala, an executive vice president and head of Wells Fargo's global remittance services, said in the press release.

Wells transferred more than $1.8 billion in 2011 via its remittance services, a 28% increase in total dollars remitted. The bank has long been considered a leader among traditional financial institutions that offer remittances, and has expanded distribution to more than 35,800 locations where customers can pick up remittances in 15 countries including Mexico, Indian and China. Wells began offering international remittance services in 1994 in the Philippines.

In a separate Thursday press release the bank also said it will expand its service by adding partnerships with seven additional financial institutions in Central and South America. All of the institutions are in countries where the bank already offers remittance pick-ups.

The number of so-called payout locations, where customers can pick up remittances, increased by 30% in 2011, the bank says.