WOCCU Touts Its Low-Cost Remmitance Program To Latin<@SM>Representatives

- WASHINGTON (05/22/01) -- Officials with the WorldCouncil of CUs (WOCCU) called on representatives of Latin Americancountries last week to look to the WOCCU-sponsored InternationalRemittance Network, or IRNet, for low-cost money transfers fortheir citizens. WOCCU officials noted during a two-day conferenceon remittances held by the Inter-American Development Bank (IADB)that residents and expatriates from Latin American countries aresaving significant amounts of money by using the fledgling IRNetsystems to send funds to and from the U.S. using credit unions onone or both ends of the transaction. The conference was held whileleading Mexican officials were in the U.S. to discuss a number ofmonetary issus, including the potential for such low-costremmitance programs. Officials with the IADB estimated more than$10 billion is remitted between the U.S. and Latin Americancountries each year, with the majority of it, an estimated $7billion, going to Mexico.