Unidos Financial Services

What Unidos Financial Services does

Unidos Financial Services is a privately held, federally-charted Money Services Business headquartered in Littleton, Colorado, and controlled by holding company Catalina Acquisitions LLC. Founded in 2006 by Daniel Marlo, the company provides alternative financial services — primarily international money transfer (branded I-Transfer after the 2014 acquisition of Tempo Financial), domestic and international bill payment, mobile airtime top-ups, prepaid debit cards, and small-dollar consumer credit (Cash Advance Online and Online Loans) — targeted at under-banked and unbanked consumers, with a particular focus on Hispanic immigrant workers and families in the United States.

All products run on a proprietary technology platform on which Unidos acts as both program manager and processor. Distribution is multi-channel: a network of 2,000-3,500+ independent retail agents across 34+ US states (combined agent count exceeds 3,000 following the i-transfer integration), plus world-class online and mobile platforms and a correspondent network of 125,000+ cash pickup locations in more than 20 countries. Money transfer service is available to 20+ countries, bill pay to 15,000+ billers across the US, Mexico, and Latin America, and mobile top-ups to 30+ countries. The combined group processes more than $1 billion in transactions annually.

Unidos generates revenue primarily through transaction fees on money transfers, bill payment service charges, mobile top-up margins, and prepaid card economics, with bilingual (English/Spanish) customer service as a stated differentiator. Leadership is anchored by CEO Jon Ness (appointed 2014 from the i-transfer side, formerly Global SVP at Ria Financial), Chairman and primary shareholder Jerry Conrad, COO Augusto Ruiz-Eldredge, and CFO Ruth Ann Kraemer, with a General Counsel/CCO holding CAMS certification overseeing regulatory compliance across state money transmitter licenses.

Name

Unidos Financial Services

Legal name

Unidos Financial Services, Inc.

Website

https://unidosfinancial.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2006

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Alternative Financial Services / Remittance

NAICS

Miscellaneous Intermediation (523910)

SIC

Finance Services (6199)

akta.pro primary industry

Cross-Border & FX Payments Platforms (BPAMAFAK)

akta.pro secondary industry

Multi-Currency Accounts, Wallets & IBAN Services (FSAMAIAG)

Keywords

• Money transfer services
• International remittances
• Bill payment services
• Prepaid debit cards
• Alternative financial services

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Technology or R&D, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Money Transfer Fees: Unidos charges fees for money transfers. Fees vary depending on how much is being sent and the destination country. The company offers competitive pricing in the industry with exchange rates that vary daily. Transfers can be sent to over 20 countries with delivery options including cash pickup at 125,000 locations, bank deposit, and home delivery.
2. Bill Payment Services: Unidos charges fees for bill payment services with Standard or Express options. Fees vary depending on service type (same day, next day, 2-3 day options). Customers can pay utilities, mortgage, cable TV, phone, automotive lenders across the US, Mexico and Latin America.
3. Mobile Top-Up/Reload Services: Unidos charges fees for mobile phone reloading services. Fees vary depending on the top-up option selected (Reload, ePin, or Pinless). Available for domestic and international reloads across 30+ countries with real-time fund crediting.
4. Prepaid Debit Card Services: Unidos offers prepaid debit cards allowing customers to cash checks and make purchases worldwide. The company provides check cashing services with competitive fees, including payroll, government, income tax refund, retirement, and settlement checks.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Unidos Financial Services operates a multi-product alternative financial services platform serving underbanked and unbanked consumers in the United States. Its core offerings include international money transfer (I-Transfer) to over 20 countries, domestic and international bill payment for more than 15,000 billers, mobile phone top-ups across 30+ countries, and prepaid debit cards. All services run on a proprietary technology platform and are delivered through a network of over 2,000 independent agents across the U.S., online and mobile platforms, and 125,000 cash pickup locations worldwide.

Product overview

Unidos Financial Services is a financial services company offering a multi-product platform for under-banked and unbanked consumers. The core offering consists of Money Transfer (branded as I-Transfer following the 2014 acquisition of Tempo Financial), Bill Pay, Top Ups (mobile airtime reload), Prepaid Debit Cards, and Money Orders. Additional services include Cash Advance Online and Online Loans. All products run on Unidos' proprietary technology platform, with distribution through a network of over 2,000 independent agents across the United States, retail locations, online platforms, and mobile applications.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Unidos Prepaid Card: Prepaid debit card allowing customers to pay for purchases and withdraw cash at millions of merchant locations worldwide.
• I-Transfer

Products and services

• Money Transfer (I-Transfer) International money remittance service enabling customers in the U.S. to send money to over 20 countries. Recipients can pick up cash at 125,000 locations worldwide, receive funds via bank deposit, or opt for home delivery in select countries.
• Bill Pay Domestic and international bill payment service allowing customers to pay utilities, mortgage, cable TV, phone, and automotive lenders. Offers Standard, Next Day, or Express delivery options across the US, Mexico, and Latin America with access to more than 15,000 billers.
• Top Ups Mobile phone reload service enabling instant domestic and international airtime top-ups. Supports Top Up Reload, ePin, and Pinless options across more than 30 countries with real-time confirmation via text message.
• Prepaid Debit Card Prepaid debit card enabling customers to make purchases and withdraw cash at millions of merchant locations worldwide, designed for consumers without traditional bank accounts.
• Cash Advance Online Short-term loan service offering fast, convenient access to small amounts of money (typically $500 or less) with minimal requirements, designed for customers needing immediate funds without leaving home.
• Online Loans Financial information and guidance service for obtaining loans online up to $1,000 from home, including prequalification options that do not affect credit scores.
• Money Orders

Quantifiable outcome

• Instant cash pickup available at 125,000+ locations worldwide
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Tempo Financial U.S. Corp. (d/b/a i-transfer)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 March 2014In March 2014, Unidos Financial Services, through its parent Catalina Acquisitions, LLC, entered into an agreement to acquire Tempo Financial U.S. Corp. d/b/a i-transfer including its parent Tempo Financial Holdings Corporation. The combined group processes more than a billion dollars annually through an independent network of over 3,000 agents. The acquisition brings additional state money transmitter licenses, 5 new major origination countries, and over 80,000 unique payout locations worldwide.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• Remitly: Remitly is a digital-first remittance company with significant US-Latin America corridor share and a mobile app-led customer experience. It represents the strategic threat and emerging model that Unidos must adapt to, with comparable end-customer segments but very different cost structures.
• Wise (formerly TransferWise): Wise is a digital cross-border payments company using mid-market FX rates with transparent pricing. It competes for cross-border money movement in Unidos' corridors and represents the emerging low-cost, no-agent model that pressures traditional remittance economics.
• Sendwave: Sendwave is a mobile-first remittance company focused on Africa-to-global corridors with a digital-only model. While focused on Africa, it exemplifies the digital-first competitive model that pressures traditional agent-based remittance economics across all corridors including Latin America.

Broad incumbents

• Western Union: Western Union is the dominant global incumbent in cross-border money transfer with the largest agent network and brand recognition. It competes directly with Unidos across consumer remittances, bill pay, and prepaid services, while also serving as a comparison benchmark for pricing and corridors.
• Xoom (PayPal): Xoom is PayPal's international money transfer service targeting the US-Latin America corridor and other emerging markets. It competes with Unidos on digital remittances, mobile top-ups, and bill pay, with the added distribution and brand backing of PayPal.

Direct peers

• MoneyGram: MoneyGram is one of the world's largest cross-border money transfer companies, directly competing with Unidos in the US-Latin America corridor with similar agent-based distribution and digital channels. Both serve underbanked consumers with multi-product platforms including bill pay and mobile top-ups.
• Viamericas: Viamericas is a US-based money transfer company serving the US-to-Latin America corridor with an agent and digital model. Like Unidos, Viamericas targets Hispanic underbanked consumers with multi-product offerings, making it a close mid-market peer in segment, geography, and channels.
• Ria Financial Services: Ria is a major US-headquartered remittance provider with extensive agent networks in Latin America and globally. Unidos' CEO Jon Ness previously served as Global SVP at Ria, and several Unidos leaders came from Ria, indicating deep operational comparability in corridors, agent model, and product set.
• DolEx Dollar Express: DolEx is a US-based remittance provider specializing in the US-to-Latin America and Caribbean corridor with a strong agent presence. Unidos' COO previously led product and operations at DolEx, and both companies compete head-to-head for Hispanic remittance customers in similar corridors.
• Sigue Corporation: Sigue is a US-based remittance and bill payment company focused on the US-to-Mexico and Latin America corridor. Like Unidos, Sigue serves Hispanic underbanked consumers through an agent network with money transfer, bill pay, and top-up services, making it a close mid-market peer.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/unidos-financial-services-inc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Unidos Financial Services