Money Transfer and Currency Data: Two Industry Powerhouses Become One
Xe and HiFX, two of the world's leading companies in the foreign currency/money transfer industry have joined forces. Interview recap of CEO Simon Griffin
December 20, 2018 — 5 min read
Empowering businesses and consumers for what’s next
December 3rd, 2018
Today, we celebrate a truly significant milestone in the evolution of XE and HiFX. Two globally recognized leaders in international money transfer and currency exchange data join forces under the unified XE brand.
HiFX, established in Windsor, UK in 1998, is a leading provider of international money transfers. Founded in Newmarket, Canada in 1993, XE.com quickly became the world’s trusted authority in global currency data.
For the past quarter of a century, both companies have empowered customers to live international lives. What does the future have in store for XE and its customers? Empowering people like travelers, expats and migrant workers to live their best international lives.
We talked to XE CEO Simon Griffin in the days leading up to the launch of the global re-branding initiative to find out more about this milestone moment in the convergence of the two industry leaders.
Why are our two organizations uniting under the XE brand?
Simon Griffin: "XE is well known for its currency information website and app which bring currency information to millions of users. We know that a large percentage of these users are interested in the rate because they are considering the timing of an international payment. By combining XE with HiFX we can better support those users with their ultimate need rather than just helping them with the rate information part.
Further, by combining resources we can move more quickly to bring enhanced or new services to our users, so we can continue to empower their international lives and international businesses. As an example of this, we recently launched new mobile apps on both iOS and Android that make it even easier for customers to send their money abroad, using our new branding and logos. These apps are not only easy to use, the user interface of the app looks great."
What is your vision for XE in this new phase?
"This new phase is just the beginning - rather than the end of the journey. In this phase, we are focused on introducing the XE brand to those HiFX customers that aren’t aware of it, although there probably aren’t too many. We will let HiFX consumers and business customers know that even with a name change, they can expect the same great exchange rates, same awesome service and same experience of booking transactions and sending payments to loads of countries around the world. At the same time, the XE customers who use and subscribe to our range of information services can continue to use our site and apps just as they have done in the past.
Beyond this new stage in our company's evolution, we will be bringing our services to new markets around the world in 2019 and launching new products that further empower our customers' international lives."
What will the new brand mean for our customers?
"The visible bit, (meaning our new colours, logo, and so on) is what customers will first notice - but that’s only a small part of it. As we bring the two companies together, things will continue to evolve. We will get quicker and better at expanding our range of products and services, so we can continue to help customers lead 'international lives'."
What excites you most about the future in the money transfer industry and the opportunity for XE?
"XE has an unmatched audience, with hundreds of millions of customers trusting us to tell them what is happening with their favourite currencies, this is something many of our competitors would dearly love to have. We have that audience, so we have a unique opportunity to understand why people check rates and what aspects of their international lives they need help with. Right now, we can help them move money overseas to pay a bill, buy a holiday home, pay a supplier or receive funds from an overseas customer.
We already know though that our users have many more reasons for checking rates and looking at currency information. It is our ambition to build new products and services to better empower them to fulfill their goals. The last few years have been about bringing our two great businesses together, we now will fully turn our attention to our customers and meeting their needs to support them as they live out their international lives."
Summary
Empowering international lives is what XE is all about. Money transfer, foreign currency market insights, and currency exchange data are the services we provide. These services enable individuals to enrich their lives.
Whether it’s investing in a property overseas, paying for a child’s post-secondary education, or deciding the ideal time to make a significant investment in a foreign currency. XE helps all who journey around this big old world of ours - be it for business, pleasure, or the pursuit of fulfilling ambitions which have no borders.
XE. Powering you. Powering your business. Powering our employees.