In the early forties of the 20th century, Western Union has used the first time a commercial intercity microwave transmission system. In 1920, Western Union has implemented the world's first transmission of images over the ocean. You do not need to open a bank account, so you can send or receive money in any of the 170 000 service points of Western Union around the world. In 2007 the company made 167.7 million transactions on money transfers between individuals and 404.6 million transactions between physical and legal persons.