Does this service still exist in the USA?

November 10, 2023 11:10 AM

At one time one could walk into a specific company, send cash to a specific person at a specific location. I've forgotten the company name. Can anyone help me out?
posted by Homer42 to Work & Money (12 answers total)

Are you thinking of sending money by wire through Western Union?
posted by potrzebie at 11:11 AM on November 10, 2023 [4 favorites]

WesternUnion and Moneygram pretty much do this, though I think often with a more international focus.
posted by raccoon409 at 11:12 AM on November 10, 2023

Do you mean Western Union Money Transfer or is it something else?
posted by jacquilynne at 11:12 AM on November 10, 2023

USPS money orders?
posted by mekily at 11:36 AM on November 10, 2023

(A lot of grocery stores are also Western Union locations.)
posted by box at 11:38 AM on November 10, 2023

Another good one is Xoom.
posted by JimN2TAW at 11:41 AM on November 10, 2023

Best answer: Western Union is the classic example of this service.
posted by jmsta at 12:05 PM on November 10, 2023 [1 favorite]

Western Union is also available at Walgreens -- my mom had to use it several years ago and went there.
posted by jabes at 12:32 PM on November 10, 2023

Response by poster: Western Union is the name I was thinking of, but wasn't sure about.
posted by Homer42 at 12:57 PM on November 10, 2023

Western Union also now allows other funding methods, i.e. you can send money online and someone can pick it up as cash. I sent cash to myself in Argentina with Western Union earlier this year (this is very common because they are able to offer a very advantageous exchange rate relative to the official rate for reasons that are not really clear).
posted by ssg at 1:10 PM on November 10, 2023

My wife used to work for a f/x firm that was acquired by WU. WU just moves a lot more cash and has a lot more correspondent banks in the receiving countries, so they can offer very competitive rates. That's about it.
posted by JoeZydeco at 2:31 PM on November 10, 2023

As referenced above, sort of. Western Union is commonly used by scammers. Once you send it, it’s gone. If the recipient has bad intentions, you are out of luck.
posted by Windopaene at 3:57 PM on November 10, 2023