Moneygram Company

A federal judge has approved a final settlement that could bring to an end years of politically charged consumer litigation against the nation's biggest money-transfer companies. The suits alleged the firms charged hidden and exorbitanxt fees to some of the country's most vulnerable consumers--Mexican immigrants wiring money home.

MoneyGram International Inc., which wires money and provides electronic bill paying, said computer hackers might have stolen personal data on about 79,000 customers. A computer server was "unlawfully accessed via the Internet" last month, Minneapolis-based MoneyGram said. The company said it did not know whether hackers actually compromised any customer information.

In the wake of opposition from California lawmakers and Latino community organizers, Western Union, MoneyGram and Orlandi Valuta are expected Tuesday to announce an enhanced settlement to a federal class-action lawsuit alleging that they charged immigrants steep hidden costs to wire money to Mexico. Western Union and Orlandi Valuta parent First Data Corp. and MoneyGram Payment Systems Inc.

Mexican immigrants who sued money-transfer companies for allegedly charging them hidden transaction fees soon will be able to receive modest discounts from the companies. Class-action suits against the companies -- First Data Corp. subsidiaries Western Union Financial Services Inc. and Orlandi Valuta, and MoneyGram Payment Systems Inc., a subsidiary of Viad Corp. -- alleged that they collected hidden charges for years from customers sending money from the United States to Mexico.

The Western Union and MoneyGram companies have been accused of failing to tell customers that the firms deducted a currency conversion fee from funds wired to victims of Hurricane Pauline in Latin America. Attorney Fred J. Kumetz said in a federal lawsuit filed Monday that despite announcing that they would wire money to the hurricane victims without charge, the firms subtracted a fee of about 10% for converting dollars into Mexican pesos and other Latin American currencies.

MoneyGram Payment Systems Inc. on Tuesday unveiled simplified and reduced rates for customers wiring money to Mexico, a strategy designed to win back some of the business the company has lost in recent years to new competitors. Called Cambio Plus, the new program allows customers to transfer any amount of money to Mexico for a flat fee of $15. MoneyGram also is offering a more favorable exchange rate than previously.

An appellate court has cleared the way for a settlement worth up to $400 million for people who sent money to Mexico through this country's biggest wire transfer companies from 1987 to 1999. Plaintiffs in three states had claimed the wire transfer companies--Western Union, Orlandi Valuta and MoneyGram--charged hidden and excessive fees to predominantly immigrant consumers, leading to a federal court settlement last year in which the companies agreed to give discount coupons to former customers.

MoneyGram and Western Union announced a nationwide settlement Wednesday to compensate millions of immigrants who allegedly paid exorbitant hidden fees when wiring money from the United States to Mexico for more than a decade. The settlement aims to remedy the companies' widely criticized practice of using currency exchange rates that are far less favorable than the prevailing daily rates without informing customers, many of them immigrants who can least afford it.

A group of California politicians, civil rights groups and Latino community leaders were expected today to announce their opposition to a preliminary settlement by Western Union and MoneyGram that would compensate immigrants nationwide who allegedly paid exorbitant hidden fees when wiring money to Mexico.

Support among California Latino leaders was crumbling Tuesday for an enhanced settlement to a federal class-action lawsuit alleging three money-wiring companies charged immigrants steep hidden costs to send money to Mexico. State Sen. Richard Polanco (D-Los Angeles), who helped broker the deal with Western Union, MoneyGram and Orlandi Valuta, opted out of a scheduled news conference in the 11th hour after a coalition of Latino groups accused him of selling out and betraying his constituents.

Many Mexican immigrants are eligible for modest refunds as a result of settlements in a pair of class-action suits against three money-transfer companies. Here's a look at the process for making claims in those cases: Over the next month, claim forms will be mailed to people who wired money from the United States to Mexico between about 1987 and 1999 using Viad Corp.'s MoneyGram Payment Systems Inc. or First Data Corp. subsidiaries Western Union Financial Services Inc. or Orlandi Valuta.

An appellate court has cleared the way for a settlement worth up to $400 million for people who sent money to Mexico through this country's biggest wire transfer companies from 1987 to 1999. Plaintiffs in three states had claimed the wire transfer companies--Western Union, Orlandi Valuta and MoneyGram--charged hidden and excessive fees to predominantly immigrant consumers, leading to a federal court settlement last year in which the companies agreed to give discount coupons to former customers.

MoneyGram Payment Systems Inc. on Tuesday unveiled simplified and reduced rates for customers wiring money to Mexico, a strategy designed to win back some of the business the company has lost in recent years to new competitors. Called Cambio Plus, the new program allows customers to transfer any amount of money to Mexico for a flat fee of $15. MoneyGram also is offering a more favorable exchange rate than previously.

A federal judge has approved a final settlement that could bring to an end years of politically charged consumer litigation against the nation's biggest money-transfer companies. The suits alleged the firms charged hidden and exorbitanxt fees to some of the country's most vulnerable consumers--Mexican immigrants wiring money home.

Lawyers for California immigrants who allege they were charged steep hidden fees to wire money to Mexico filed a new class-action lawsuit against Western Union, MoneyGram and Orlandi Valuta in an effort to circumvent a federal injunction that had blocked their original cases from moving forward.

Support among California Latino leaders was crumbling Tuesday for an enhanced settlement to a federal class-action lawsuit alleging three money-wiring companies charged immigrants steep hidden costs to send money to Mexico. State Sen. Richard Polanco (D-Los Angeles), who helped broker the deal with Western Union, MoneyGram and Orlandi Valuta, opted out of a scheduled news conference in the 11th hour after a coalition of Latino groups accused him of selling out and betraying his constituents.

Every two weeks, Alfredo Cervantes sends home all the money he can spare--$50, $100, sometimes $200. Saving the cash from his factory job has been tough, Cervantes said, but getting it to relatives in the small Mexican town of Sahuayo has been even tougher. Money orders disappeared in the mail. Dollars sent through an informal cross-border network were stolen. Friends who traveled to Tijuana to deposit money in Mexican banks were robbed at knifepoint.

MoneyGram International Inc., which wires money and provides electronic bill paying, said computer hackers might have stolen personal data on about 79,000 customers. A computer server was "unlawfully accessed via the Internet" last month, Minneapolis-based MoneyGram said. The company said it did not know whether hackers actually compromised any customer information.

In the wake of opposition from California lawmakers and Latino community organizers, Western Union, MoneyGram and Orlandi Valuta are expected Tuesday to announce an enhanced settlement to a federal class-action lawsuit alleging that they charged immigrants steep hidden costs to wire money to Mexico. Western Union and Orlandi Valuta parent First Data Corp. and MoneyGram Payment Systems Inc.

A group of California politicians, civil rights groups and Latino community leaders were expected today to announce their opposition to a preliminary settlement by Western Union and MoneyGram that would compensate immigrants nationwide who allegedly paid exorbitant hidden fees when wiring money to Mexico.