Western Union Begins Investor Road Show for Upcoming Spin-off; Provides Financial Outlook as Standalone Company



    Western Union today announced that it will be making
    presentations to the equity investment community in preparation for
    its planned September 29, 2006 spin-off from First Data Corp.
    (NYSE:FDC). The meetings will be led by Christina Gold, President and
    Chief Executive Officer of Western Union, David Barnes, Executive Vice
    President of Finance and Strategic Development, and Scott Scheirman,
    Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. The company's
    road show presentation is available at www.westernunion.com.

    Financial Outlook

    Western Union will provide financial guidance during the
    presentations. Assuming completion of its separation from First Data
    on September 29, 2006, Western Union expects revenue for 2006 of $4.4
    billion to $4.5 billion, an increase of between 11% and 12% from 2005
    revenue of $4.0 billion. For 2006, the company expects operating
    income of $1.32 billion to $1.34 billion, excluding expenses related
    to its spin-off from First Data, which is 4% to 6% higher than 2005.
    For 2007, Western Union expects revenue growth in the range of 10%
    to 12%, excluding acquisitions. In addition, the company expects
    operating income growth of 6% to 9%, excluding the impact of expenses
    related to its spin-off from First Data. A chart detailing the
    company's guidance is attached to this release.
    Western Union's long-term objective beyond 2007 is to deliver
    revenue and operating profit growth of 10% to 12% on an annual basis
    and annual EPS growth of 12% to 14%.
    Ms. Gold said: "Western Union has a compelling long-term growth
    story, with the proven strategy and track record, global agent
    network, seasoned management team and financial strength to remain the
    preeminent provider of money transfer services across the globe. The
    separation from First Data creates rich new opportunities for the
    company to invest its strong cash flow in continuing to expand
    services in key growth regions of the world; in marketing efforts,
    including our highly successful Gold Card Loyalty program; and in
    continuing to enhance customer convenience and choice. We see
    favorable long-term trends in the global money transfer market and, as
    an independent company, will be better positioned to capture them."
    Ms. Gold continued: "In the near term, we expect the company will
    continue to be affected by softness in its U.S. domestic and U.S. to
    Mexico consumer-to-consumer money transfer businesses. As previously
    discussed, we believe the slower growth rates in these markets largely
    reflect the uncertainty caused by the immigration debate and the
    related activities in the U.S. In addition, our operating profits for
    2006 and 2007 will reflect increased investment in the business to
    address this issue, to secure future growth, as well as the shift in
    our business mix, reflecting higher growth from our international
    business, which carries lower profit margins."
    Ms. Gold concluded: "We believe the slowdown related to the
    immigration debate is a temporary issue, and our 2007 guidance assumes
    revenue growth in the U.S. and U.S. to Mexico businesses will begin to
    improve but will not reach levels experienced in 2005. In addition, we
    expect that our international consumer-to-consumer money transfer
    business, which currently represents 60% of our revenues and does not
    include U.S. to Mexico transactions, will remain strong throughout
    2006 and 2007. The geographic diversity of our business, which is a
    key strength for Western Union, should enable us to generate solid
    results despite the temporary issues we are addressing in the U.S. and
    U.S. to Mexico markets."

    Third Quarter Financial Update

    During its road show presentation, Western Union will also provide
    updates on several transaction growth rates excluding Vigo. For the
    third quarter through September 14, the company's overall
    consumer-to-consumer transactions grew 15% on a year-over-year basis.
    International transactions grew 23% for the same period. In addition,
    for the third quarter through September 14, Western Union-branded
    transactions from the U.S. to Mexico grew 3% on a year-over-year
    basis, while domestic transactions declined by 4%.
    Western Union expects to issue its third quarter 2006 earnings
    press release after the market close on October 23. The company will
    also host a conference call.

    Non-GAAP Measures

    In certain circumstances results have been presented that are
    non-GAAP (generally accepted accounting principles) measures and
    should be viewed in addition to, and not in lieu of, the company's
    reported results. Reconciliations to comparable GAAP measures are
    available in the accompanying schedule to this press release.

    Safe Harbor Compliance Statement for Forward-Looking Statements

    This press release contains forward-looking statements regarding
    projected future results. Forward-looking statements include all
    statements that do not relate solely to historical or current facts,
    and generally can be identified by the use of words such as "may,"
    "believe," "will," "expect," "project," "estimate," "anticipate,"
    "plan," "could," "would," "likely," "intend" or "continue." All
    forward-looking statements are inherently uncertain as they are based
    on various expectations and assumptions concerning future events and
    they are subject to numerous known and unknown risks and uncertainties
    which could cause actual events or results to differ materially from
    those projected. These factors include, but are not limited to: the
    impact of our spin-off from First Data Corporation; changes in
    immigration laws, patterns and other factors related to immigrants;
    the integration of significant businesses and technologies we acquire
    and realization of anticipated synergies from these acquisitions;
    technological changes, particularly with respect to e-commerce; our
    ability to attract and retain qualified key employees; changes in
    laws, regulations or industry standards affecting our businesses;
    changes in foreign exchange spreads on money transfer transactions;
    changes in the political or economic climate in countries in which we
    operate; continued growth at rates approximating recent levels for
    consumer money transfer transactions and other product markets; our
    ability to compete effectively in the money transfer industry with
    respect to global and niche or corridor money transfer providers,
    United States and international banks, card associations, card-based
    payments providers and a number of other types of competitive service
    providers; our ability to maintain our agent network; implementation
    of Western Union agent agreements with governmental entities according
    to schedule and no interruption of relations with countries in which
    Western Union has or is implementing material agent agreements;
    successfully managing the potential both for patent protection and
    patent liability in the context of rapidly developing legal framework
    for expansive software patent protection; successfully managing credit
    and fraud risks from our agents and from consumers; unanticipated
    developments relating to lawsuits, investigations or similar matters;
    catastrophic events; and any material breach of security of any of our
    systems. For more information on important factors upon which these
    forward-looking statements are premised, please refer to The Western
    Union Company Form 10, as amended, filed with the Securities and
    Exchange Commission.

    About Western Union

    Western Union, together with its affiliates Orlandi Valuta and
    Vigo, are leaders in global money transfer, providing people with
    fast, reliable and convenient ways to send money around the world, pay
    bills and purchase money orders through a network of over 270,000
    agent locations in more than 200 countries and territories. For more
    information, visit www.westernunion.com.

    Guidance Tables
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    2006 Financial Guidance

    6 Months
    June 30, 2006 FY 2006
    -------------------------------------
    Total Revenue $2.2B (A) $4.4B - $4.5B
    Growth 13% 11% - 12%

    ----------------------------------------------------------------------

    Operating Income, excluding spin
    expenses (C): non-recurring and
    ongoing $641M (B) $1,320M - $1,340M (D)
    Growth 5% 4% - 6%

    (A) Includes $68 million of revenue related to the acquisition of Vigo
    in October 2005.
    (B) Includes $11 million of stock compensation, SFAS 123R expense.
    (C) Spin expenses represent estimated incremental expenses associated
    with operating as a stand-alone company. Ongoing spin expenses
    relate to staffing additions and related costs to replace First
    Data support, corporate governance, information technology,
    corporate branding and global affairs, benefits and payroll
    administration, procurement, and other expenses related to being a
    stand-alone company. Non-recurring spin expenses relate to
    recruiting and relocation expenses associated with hiring key
    management positions new to our company, other employee
    compensation expenses and temporary labor used to develop ongoing
    processes. See reconciliation to Operating Income (GAAP) in
    Appendix.
    (D) Growth in Operating Income excluding spin expenses: non-recurring
    and ongoing in Q3 06 is expected to be below the 4% - 6% range and
    Operating Income excluding spin expenses in Q4 06 is expected to
    be above the 4% - 6% range. Expense timing and other factors drive
    the majority of the expected profit growth differences in Q3 and
    Q4.

    2007 Growth Outlook

    Total Revenue 10% - 12%

    Operating Income, excluding spin expenses (A):
    non-recurring and ongoing 6% - 9%

    (A) Spin expenses represent estimated incremental expenses associated
    with operating as a stand-alone company. Ongoing spin expenses
    relate to staffing additions and related costs to replace First
    Data support, corporate governance, information technology,
    corporate branding and global affairs, benefits and payroll
    administration, procurement, and other expenses related to being a
    stand-alone company. Non-recurring spin expenses relate to
    recruiting and relocation expenses associated with hiring key
    management positions new to our company, other employee
    compensation expenses and temporary labor used to develop ongoing
    processes. See reconciliation to Operating Income (GAAP) in
    Appendix.

    Note: Revenue and operating income guidance exclude any potential
    impact from future acquisitions

    Reg G Reconciliation - Operating Income

    (in Millions)

    6 Months
    June 30,2006 FY 2006
    -------------------------------------
    Operating Income, $641 $1,320 to $1,340
    excluding spin expenses: 4% 6%
    non-recurring and ongoing

    Less spin expenses
    Non-recurring $2 20 20
    Ongoing 20 20
    -------------------------------------
    Total spin expenses $2 40 40

    Operating Income (GAAP) $639 $1,280 to $1,300
    1% 2%

    Operating Income excluding spin expenses: non-recurring and ongoing
    has been displayed to allow the financial reader improved
    comparability of 2006 financial performance. However, the financial
    reader should be aware that ongoing spin expenses are part of the
    company's future cost structure.
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