The international payments world is facing a huge shakeup.<br /><br /> Alibaba affiliate Ant Financial Services is to buy the US money-transfer company MoneyGram for around $880 million (823 million euros).<br /><br /> Ant, which was formerly known as Alipay, is the world’s largest financial-technology company and it dominates online payments in China. <br /><br /> It is controlled by billionaire Jack Ma, the founder of massive Chinese e-commerce company Alibaba. He owns about a third of And which was spun out of Alibaba in 2011. <br /><br /> MoneyGram, along with competitor Western Union, has long dominated the money transfer industry with 350,000 outlets in retail shops, post offices and banks, operating in close to 200 countries and territories.<br /><br /> Today MoneyGramMe announced an exciting agreement to merge with AntFinancial. Read more here: https://t.co/vIIjS8I7TW #moneygramnews— MoneyGram (@MoneyGramMe) January 26, 2017<br /><br /> Game-changer<br /><br /> Putting Ant’s technological expertise together with MoneyGram’s large network of agents and established brand could be a game-changer for the industry.<br /><br /> Experts said it would mean more consumers, including migrant workers sending remittances home, to use online transfer services rather than taking cash to storefronts.<br /><br /> “The combination is a powerful one: leading-edge technology with global reach and a significant physical footprint. Innovation and trust in one bundle,” said Warren Mead, global co-head of fintech at KPMG. “I expect to see the ever increasing convergence of fintech and the more traditional financial services sector.”<br /><br /> CIFIUS approval needed<br /><br /> The deal will have to be approved by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CIFIUS), a US inter-agency panel that reviews foreign acquisitions of domestic assets for national security concerns. It has previously blocked Chinese deals in the United States.<br /><br /> This comes against a backdrop of rising tensions between China and the US over President Donald Trump’s desire to re-evaluate key foreign policy conventions such as the ‘One China’ principle. He has also threatened to impose punitive tariffs on Chinese imports.<br /><br /> Trump has, however, met with Alibaba’s Jack Ma since his election, and described Ma as “smart” and “open-minded”.<br /><br /> Ant/Alipay’s deal to buy MoneyGram shifts its global push into high gear https://t.co/nqzeCkSXLA pic.twitter.com/01ZtWa3T1s— PaymentsSource (@payments_source) January 26, 2017<br />
