Western Union Co., the biggest U.S. money-transfer business, joined the U.K. and 68 other nations in pledging $420 million to a United Nations-administered fund created to rush aid to victims of wars and natural disasters.
The UN said Englewood, Colorado-based Western Union became the first corporate donor to the Central Emergency Response Fund, with a pledge of $100,000 through the company’s charitable foundation. Britain pledged $80 million and Norway, Sweden and the Netherlands said they would each donate $30 million.
“When a disaster strikes, we know that all thoughts for the future must be put aside until basic human needs can be met,” Luella Chavez D’Angelo, president of the Western Union Foundation, said in a statement. “Through our work with CERF, we hope to help speed the recovery of those affected.” The pledges will bring to $1.1 billion the amount contributed to the UN fund since it was established in 2005.
The UN has disbursed $595 million, led by allocations of $90 million to the Democratic Republic of the Congo and $55 million to Sudan. Bangladesh received $14.7 million last month to assist its recovery from Cyclone Sidr.
