America was on the verge of civil war and needed a reliable connection between the North and South. On the telegraph market of the USA at this time were operated with six large companies: American Telegraph Company, New York Albany and Buffalo Electro-Magnetic Telegraph Company, Atlantic and Ohio Telegraph, Illinois & Mississippi Telegraph Company, New Orleans & Ohio Telegraph Company, and the brainchild of Sibley & Co. - The Western Union Telegraph. In 1920, Western Union has implemented the world's first transmission of images over the ocean. In the 30's of the twentieth century, Western Union has become the world's largest telegraph company. Another invention of Western Union - time synchronization. Most service points of Western Union work in the time convenient for customers throughout the week and throughout the year. In 1995, First Financial Management was acquired by First Data Corp. (the deal amounted to $ 7 billion), and Western Union Financial Services became a subsidiary of First Data. By 1861 Western Union telegraph lines entangled the whole America. It's time to explore Europe. In 2007 the company made 167.7 million transactions on money transfers between individuals and 404.6 million transactions between physical and legal persons.