Western Union, MasterCard, Gtech Launch Prepaid Card in Italy

By John Adams

Published October 16, 2013, 10:35 a.m. EDT

|

Updated October 16, 2013, 9:35 a.m. EDT

1 Min Read

Western Union and MasterCard have joined with lottery and gaming company Gtech S.p.A to offer the My WU reloadable prepaid card in Italy.

Processing Content

Gtech S.p.A, which operates as Lottomatica in Italy, is the first company in Europe to join the Western Union Global Share platform, which supports stored-value products through local companies.

The My WU prepaid card is designed to serve more than 4 million migrant workers in Italy. The cards will be available at about 15,000 Lottomatica Carta Lis locations and online. Consumers can reload the card at more than 10,000 ATMs throughout Italy. The My WU card supports money transfers, direct deposits, and retail purchases.

"We view the introduction of this service in Italy as a significant advancement in our joint efforts to support financial inclusion around the world," says Carlo Enrico, group executive for strategy and development at MasterCard, in a press release.

Western Union and MasterCard have an ongoing partnership to offer payments and other financial services in developing and underserved markets.

Executive Editor, Payments

John Adams is executive editor of payments for American Banker. John interviews top executives in the payments, cryptocurrency and fintech... Read full bio

For reprint and licensing requests for this article, click here.

MORE FROM AMERICAN BANKER

Fintech

Appeals court vacates Colorado 'rent-a-bank' ban on rates

A federal appeals court has agreed to rehear a challenge to a Colorado law intended to combat "rent-a-bank," arrangements that would impose Colorado's interest rate caps on certain out-of-state banks.

By Kate Berry
Reporter

10m ago
CDFIs

Trump budget includes cuts to CDFI Fund

The White House's proposed 2027 budget would slash funding to the Community Development Financial Institutions Fund, the latest in an ongoing campaign from the Trump administration to dismantle the politically popular program.

By Claire Williams
Reporter

1h ago
Artificial intelligence

Exclusive research More than half of US bankers say AI is a priority

American Banker's 2026 AI Talent Shift survey finds that most institutions upped spending on artificial intelligence by at least 10% over the last year.

By Frank Gargano
Data Reporter

3h ago
Fintech

How legacy payment systems expose banks to fintech rivals

Tech overhauls aren't easy, financial tech experts say it's necessary to compete effectively with digital-focused firms.

By Cheryl Winokur Munk

3h ago
Treasury Department

Treasury picks BNY, Robinhood for Trump accounts rollout

The partnership between the long-established bank and the fintech brokerage will handle the development of the government-owned account platform behind the new government-seeded retirement accounts for children.

By Ebrima Santos Sanneh
Reporter

3h ago
Regulation and compliance

FCC hits telecom firm that enabled bank impersonation calls

The Federal Communications Commission proposed a $4.5 million fine against Voxbeam Telecommunications, which it accused of facilitating fraud scams. Many of the calls spoofed phone numbers belonging to American banks.

By Catherine Leffert
Reporter

April 3

Load More