Concord EFS Acquisition

Concord EFS, Inc., announced that it has reached an agreement to acquire Cash Station, Inc., the seventh-largest electronic funds transfer (EFT) network in the U.S. The Chicago based network will be combined with Concord’s MAC^® network, currently the second-largest EFT network in the nation (based on the number of switched transactions). The acquisition will be completed in the second quarter of 2000, subject to regulatory approval and closing conditions.

The Cash Station network has 645 financial institution members and operates primarily in Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Missouri, Michigan, and Wisconsin. More than 7,000 automatic teller machines and six million debit cards carry the Cash Station brand. Switch processing, ATM terminal driving, and card authorization services—currently outsourced by Cash Station to a third party processor—will be converted to Concord operations. Cash Station switches over 15 million transactions per month and drives over 1,600 ATMs for its members.

“Acquisition of the Cash Station network will serve to strengthen and expand our MAC network franchise in the Midwest and Chicago while opening new opportunities for expansion in the contiguous states,” said Edward A. Labry III, president of Concord. “It will further expand Concord’s financial institution distribution channel for ATM driving, off-line debit processing, payroll processing, and our turnkey agent bank program. We expect that consolidation among EFT networks will continue, driven by the fact that financial institutions are merging and demanding broad geographic coverage under a single brand.”

Stephen S. Cole, president and CEO of Cash Station agreed. “The Networks that thrive today are those that go beyond simply switching transactions, and offer a variety of products and services to their members. By joining the MAC network, we will provide our membership greater geographic coverage, more significant economies of scale, access to a greater array of economic services, along with affiliation with one of America’s pre-eminent financial service brands.”

“Cash Station has had great success in the markets they serve by investing the Cash Station brand with significant value over the years, and by serving their client base well,” said Phil Valvardi, president of the MAC network. “The result is that Cash Station, Inc. will bring with it Chicago’s largest financial institutions, many of whom do not have a prior relationship with Concord.”

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