Postal Digest: Money transfer links expand; US regulators sworn in
More postal news from around the world – including news from the US, Uruguay, the UAE, Croatia and Scandinavia
US postal regulators sworn in
Two members of the US Postal Regulatory Commission were sworn in at the weekend – the Commission’s returning vice chairman Mark Acton and new Commissioner Robert Taub.
Taub was most recently special assistant to US Secretary of the Army John McHugh, and his previous experience includes a decade as chief of staff to McHugh when he was a Congressman and chairman of the House postal subcommittee. Taub also spent time in Congressional staff positions including staff director for the postal subcommittee, giving him a significant role in shaping the 2006 Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act. Acton has been on the PRC since 2005, before which he was chief of staff at the Commission’s predecessor, the Postal Rate Commission.
Both Republicans, Acton and Taub join existing commissioners and Democrats Nanci Langley and Chairman Ruth Goldway on the PRC, leaving a vacant position still to be filled.
Latin money transfer network expanding
Postal operators in Ecuador and Uruguay started a new cross-border money transfer service last week, under the CorreoGiros banner.
The move came as a result of the agreement between 10 Latin American countries and Spain in July 2010 to forge an electronic money transfer network between them. Once the system is fully set up, it will include Spain, Peru, Ecuador, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Argentina, Colombia, Chile and Uruguay.
Uruguay Post said five more countries were set to link in with itself, Ecuador, Spain, Chile and Peru in the coming months.
Emirates Post extends transfer service to Tunisia
Emirates Post has extended its money transfer service to Tunisia, through the postal network powered by the Universal Postal Union’s International Financial System platform.
A deal with Tunisia Post followed similar agreements struck with Jordan and Morrocco earlier this year, and Emirates Post said it plans to add “many more” Arab countries to the network soon.
Ibrahim Bin Karam, chief commercial officer at Emirates Post Group, said the new link would strengthen relations between Tunisia and the United Arab Emirates, allowing people in UAE to send money to loved ones in Tunisia for only a small charge. “Our vast postal network will ensure that customers can transfer money with ease from any part of the UAE,” he said.
Croatian Post launches postal app for iPhone
iPhone users in Croatia can now download an application from the Apple App Store helping them with their mailing.
Croatian Post has launched a new app for the popular smartphone that can calculate postage costs, find delivery information for different locations and track down the nearest post office on an interactive map.
The free app also provides easy access to the Croatian Post call centre if further information is required, but the Post said it is in the process of developing future versions that will have more features.
General Counsel Viveca Bergstedt to leave PostNord
Scandinavian postal operator PostNord has said its General Counsel of nine years, Viveca Bergstedt is to leave the company on October 31.
The company’s HR director, Palle Juliussen, will take over Group responsibility for legal affairs as Bergstedt leaves to “seek new challenges”. Jens Heurlin and Jessica Karlberg Lagrelius take over as head of legal affairs in, respectively, Danish and Swedish operations.
Bergstedt said: “It has been very exciting to be part of the Danish-Swedish merger and build a corporate legal staff, and to address regulatory issues for the new group. We now have new Swedish and Danish postal legislation in place – an important milestone – and it’s a good time for me to make this change, for personal reasons.”
