In 1860 the U.S. Congress arranged among the telegraph companies a competition to create a national line. The winner was Western Union. Money transfer is a matter of minutes, at any distance. One of the common kinds of money transfer is a transfer via the international system of Western Union. In 2000 was launched the Web site westernunion.com, with which users from certain countries can independently transfer funds online. 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. In October 1871 the company Western Union began to provide money transfer services, drawing on its own extensive telegraph network.