1998 - the number of points of money transfers worldwide reached 50,000. The network of money transfers of Western Union is the world's largest. Separation of the companies had two objectives: first, to give Western Union the opportunity to develop more intensively, and secondly, to help First Data to return to its original activity (in 1992 the company separated from the payment system of American Express as an independent financial services company). Payment systems are one of basic elements of infrastructure of e-commerce. The Western Union Company is a financial services and communications company based in the United States. Western Union provides consumers and businesses with fast, reliable and convenient ways to send and receive money around the world, to send payments and to purchase money orders. Western Union for more than 130 years provides money transfer services to its customers.