Western Union has taken of 451st position in the rating Fortune 500 in 2009, having moved from 473rd line in 2008. In the Western Union in the 30s of the 20th century worked 14 thousand couriers delivering telegrams. The Western Union Company - the American company, specialising on granting of services of monetary intermediary. Western Union was founded in 1851. The company is one of leaders in the market of the international remittances. The size of the commission fee for the transfer is charged according to the Western Union tariffs and depends on the amount of money sent. In 1864, fearing the laying of long underwater lines, Western Union offered to carry out laying of telegraph lines to Europe through the Russian Alaska under the narrow Bering Strait and then to Siberia with branching in the major cities of Europe. Payment systems are one of basic elements of infrastructure of e-commerce. In October 1871 the company has implemented the world's first telegraph money order. After a century money transfers have become a major source of income for Western Union. In 2000 was launched the Web site westernunion.com, with which users from certain countries can independently transfer funds online. In the 1910-1920 years. Western Union is actively engaged in researching, innovating in the field of data transmission. In 1884 Western Union has become a joint-stock company and was brought to the stock exchange. The company has entered in the first American stock index Dow Jones.