CEO Devin McGranahan Selects Western Union Scholar of the Year

The Western Union Company (NYSE: WU) and the Western Union Foundation are proud to recognize Arian Hajihassani as our CEO Scholar of the Year, the organization’s highest scholarship award for the 2023-2024 school year.

Hajihassani is a first-generation university student studying biochemistry and mathematics at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh. Driven by an insatiable desire to learn and make meaningful contributions to cancer treatment and prevention, Hajihassani has already demonstrated great impact in his field by contributing to the development of a potential new treatment for patients diagnosed with type I & II diabetes, and has had pancreatic cancer research findings published in the American Association for Cancer Research Journal.

"Arian’s academic achievements and contributions to medical science as an undergraduate student are truly remarkable,” said Devin McGranahan, CEO of Western Union. "Western Union and the Western Union Foundation are proud to support Arian’s academic journey. We believe he has a bright future ahead with great potential to make a lasting and positive impact on the world.”

As an international student originally from Iran, Hajihassani has faced mounting bills and expensive tuition while studying in the United States. To make ends meet, he works two part-time jobs – and is grateful for the financial support he received as a two-time Western Union Foundation Global Scholarship recipient. Now in his final year, he is thrilled to have been recognized as Devin McGranahan’s Western Union CEO Scholar of the Year, which includes an additional financial award.

"Your belief in my potential, especially during a time when I faced financial hardships in my undergraduate journey, is deeply meaningful to me,” Hajihassani shared. "My ultimate dream as a growing young scientist is to become a principal investigator in a medical institution with the aspiration of contributing to oncological research and finding potential novel therapeutics for cancer patients like my mother.”

The Western Union Foundation launched the Global Scholars program in 2017 to provide funding to international students struggling to afford their final years of college. The Foundation awarded 70 scholarships in the 2023-2024 school year to support students studying at 31 universities in 10 countries around the world. These high-achieving students hail from more than 30 different countries of origin, leaving home to make their higher education dreams a reality.

About the Western Union Foundation

The Western Union Foundation’s mission is to be a catalyst for economic opportunity for people who migrate in pursuit of a more prosperous future. With more than two decades of impact, the Foundation continues to deliver on their mission with Prosperity Beyond Borders, a multi-year commitment to drive $500 million in aggregate wage gains for disadvantaged, high-potential people who lack access to economic mobility. The Western Union Foundation is a separate, tax-exempt 501(c)(3) charitable corporation and receives support from The Western Union Company, its employees, agents, customers and business partners.

About Western Union

The Western Union Company (NYSE: WU) is committed to helping people around the world who aspire to build financial futures for themselves, their loved ones and their communities. Our leading cross-border, cross-currency money movement, payments and digital financial services empower consumers, businesses, financial institutions and governments—across more than 200 countries and territories and nearly 130 currencies—to connect with billions of bank accounts, millions of digital wallets and cards, and a global footprint of hundreds of thousands of retail locations. Our goal is to offer accessible financial services that help people and communities prosper. For more information, visit www.westernunion.com.

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