Western Union CFO Raj Agrawal confirmed the long-rumored partnership during an interview with Bloomberg, stating that the company was testing the efficiency of blockchain transactions.

Agrawal told the publication that its blockchain efforts are still in a "testing phase" and are not a key part of the 167-year-old firm's business. He added that, despite industry bullishness surrounding the promise of blockchain technology, the trial has yet to bear any fruit that would be a "big unlock" for Western Union.

Rumors about the trial had swirled since the beginning of the year when a small publication called Ripple News claimed insider knowledge that Western Union was working with Ripple. This rumor was bolstered by a tweet from Michael Arrington, who recently launched the first XRP-denominated cryptoasset hedge fund.