NEWS

Most Who Plan to Pay Off Debt Do

The Cambridge Credit Counseling Corp. recently released the Cambridge Consumer Credit Index. The "Reality Gap," which is the difference between the amount of debt consumers say they will pay off in the next month compared to the amount actually paid off, narrowed by eight points from May, to eight points. The survey also found that in the next six months, 39% of respondents plan to take on more debt to make a major purchase.

Additionally, the company released its survey of consumers requesting credit-counseling services. When asked why they sought help now, 33.6% of callers said they were frustrated with high bank rates. For more information visit: www.cambridgeconsumerindex.com/index.asp?content=client_survey .

Strong POS Growth in Restaurants and Hospitality

POS installations at restaurants in the United States and Canada jumped 16% in 2003, with equally strong growth expected for 2004, according to IHL Consulting Group. Five different segments within hospitality, from quick-service dining to casinos and cruise ships, were analyzed in the study. IHL expects double-digit increases in POS equipment for restaurants in the bar/restaurant and quick service/fast food categories this year. For more information visit: www.ihlservices.com .

InterCept May Sell

InterCept, Inc., provider of technology products and services for financial institutions, is exploring a possible sale of the company. Based on interest from prospective purchasers the company believes that an exploration of strategic alternatives is in its best interest. In February, InterCept announced plans to sell its merchant services division for $37.4 million but later decided not to sell.

Canadians Abandon $1.7 Billion in Purchases

Research conducted by Leger Marketing on behalf of Canadian processing company Moneris Solutions Corp. finds that Canadian merchants lose an estimated $1.7 billion in annual sales annually by failing to effectively manage POS operations. The survey found that 64% of Canadians say they've abandoned a purchase because a checkout line was too long or moving too slowly. Eighty-eight percent who have walked away from a purchase, have done so in the last year.

The survey also found that most Canadians are not willing to wait in line for more than five minutes to purchase an item. About 20% of Canadians would wait one to three minutes whereas 40% would wait three to five minutes. Consumers estimated the value of the abandoned purchases was an average $127 per year.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

Datawire Achieves CISP, SDP Compliance

Datawire Communication Networks achieved compliance with Visa's Card Information Security Program (CISP) and MasterCard's Site Data Protection (SDP) program. The Associations established CISP and SDP to ensure the security of cardholder information for entities that store, process or transmit this data.

Compliance with the security tenets of this program will be required of all major constituents of the Visa payment system by Sept. 30, 2004. For more information on the CISP and SDP programs, visit: http://usa.visa.com/business/merchants/cisp_index.html and https://sdp.mastercardintl.com .

GASA Defines ATM Crime

The Global ATM Security Alliance (GASA) produced an International ATM Crime Directory to provide uniformity in the recording and reporting of ATM crime on its soon-to-be-launched global crime database. Previously, there has been no consensus on definitions and categories of ATM crime, resulting in a piecemeal response to ATM crime.

GASA defines ATM crime as a crime, whether prosecuted or not, that would not have occurred but for the presence of the ATM system. GASA settled on nine categories of potential ATM crimes, and whether they target the cardholder, cash, ATM machine or PIN.

They are:

• Cardholder-related: mugging, forced withdrawals, legitimate cardholder crimes
• Cash-related: ram raids, ATM burglary, ATM robbery, theft of ATM cash
• ATM-related: ATM system cyber attacks
• Card/PIN-related: ATM fraud, via card/card data and/or PIN misappropriation

Pay By Touch announced a $25 million soft closing in its ongoing second investment round, bringing total invested capital in the biometric authentication and payment solutions company to $37 million. The funding will be used to expand sales, marketing and product development.

Pay By Touch recently announced it completed the $30M acquisition of IPS Solutions (iPAY), a merchant processing platform with approximately 18,000 customers. The acquisition was effective in March with Pay By Touch maintaining IPS as a wholly owned and separately operated subsidiary.

ConverTrex SP1 Receives Vital Approval

TechTrex Inc. received Vital Processing Services' Class B approval for its ConverTrex SP1 Internet Protocol (IP) device. Merchants can now use existing POS terminals with the ConverTrex SP1 and Vital's VirtualNet SSL 1.0 connectivity to process POS transactions via the public Internet. The ConverTrex SP1 connects to the serial port of a POS terminal or integrated cash register.

Welcome Awarded ROI of the Year

Welcome, provider of enhanced payment software, was awarded the "ROI of the Year" award in "The Banker" Technology Awards 2004. Welcome's XLS solution is the world's first EMV application to win formal recognition of its role in reducing costs and increasing revenues. "The Banker" also recognized XLS as Highly Commended in the Smart Card Solution category. The core feature highlighted was the capability of XLS to run multiple dynamic loyalty programs, in real time, at the POS.

PARTNERSHIPS

Barnes & Noble Deploys VeriFone Terminals

Barnes & Noble, Inc., is deploying 6,500 VeriFone, Inc. EverestPlus POS terminals to stores nationwide to support credit, debit and gift card payment. The deployment will be completed by the end of June 2004. The customer-activated VeriFone terminals integrate with the chain's NCR electronic cash register system.

BioPay and Agilysys Align to Integrate Biometrics

Biometric payments company BioPay, LLC and enterprise computer solutions company Agilysys, Inc., have agreed to bring biometric payment systems to merchants nationwide. As part of this agreement, Agilysys will offer an interface that integrates BioPay's biometric payment technology into POS systems. The solution will help retailers track customer loyalty, initiate clerk register log-ins and expedite manager override transactions.

CPS Licenses Coupon Card

Creative Payment Systems (CPS), an MSP for Best Payments and NPC, will be licensing Vitech Financial, Ltd.'s The Coupon Card marketing and hosted-merchant technology program. As a result of this agreement, CPS will sub-license and support The Coupon Card program to end users and channel partners such as merchants, banks and fundraising organizations.

First Data Signs Agreement with Maduro & Curiel's

First Data Corp., signed a five-year processing agreement with Maduro & Curiel's Bank N.V. (MCB), the largest commercial bank in the Dutch Caribbean. Processing Center, S.A., a company recently formed by First Data and Banco General S.A., offers payment processing solutions customized for the Latin American and Caribbean regions, and will service MCB's credit and private label card needs.

In other First Data news, the company formed an alliance with Hancock Bank. The agreement establishes Hancock Merchant Services under which First Data will provide all merchant payment processing services on behalf of Hancock Bank.

Ingenico Integrates Prepaid Solution; Forms Alliance in China

Ingenico partnered with Prepaid Concepts, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Euronet Worldwide, Inc. Ingenico will jointly market Precept prepaid wireless and other prepaid products and services on the Elite 710 and 712 terminals. Precept enables merchants to activate prepaid calling card and wireless phone airtime through a PIN.

In the international arena, Ingenico formed an alliance with China Electronics Corp. (CEC). CEC will distribute Ingenico terminals to Chinese merchants and manufacture Ingenico terminals for the local market. Additionally, CIDC, a CEC subsidiary, will translate into Chinese and distribute IngeCore, Ingenico's core technology, to POS terminal manufacturers serving the tax collection market. Finally, an R&D Joint Venture involving Ingenico, Ingenico Beijing and CIDC-CEC has begun to develop a secure chip tailored to the Chinese market and built around UNICAPT 32, the platform common to all Ingenico terminals.

ACQUISITIONS

First Data to Acquire Delta Singular Division

First Data Corp., has signed an agreement to acquire Delta Singular Outsourcing Services S.A. (DSOS), the payment processing and outsourcing division and fully owned subsidiary of Delta Singular S.A. Serving financial institutions and major corporations in Greece, the Middle East and the Balkans, DSOS provides payment processing and outsourcing services, including card processing, ATM and POS driving and call center support.

Through the acquisition, First Data has secured a long-term agreement to provide payment processing and related services to Alpha Bank, currently DSOS's largest client. Alpha Bank is the second largest private commercial bank in Greece, the largest issuer of Visa cards and the exclusive issuer of American Express cards in Greece. The transaction remains subject to Delta Singular shareholder approval, First Data board approval and regulatory approval. Subject to those approvals First Data anticipates closing the transaction in the third quarter of 2004.

MasterCard Advisors Purchases Watch Hill Partners

MasterCard Advisors recently acquired consulting firm Watch Hill Partners. Watch Hill Partners specializes in optimization of customer relationships. Watch Hill Partners will be integrated with Advisors' Customer Experience Group, which offers consulting services to companies seeking to deliver differentiated customer experiences.

APPOINTMENTS

TransAKT Corp. Launches TransAKT USA, Appoints Miller

TransAKT Corp., Canadian developer of secure wireless electronic payment and communication solutions, launched TransAKT USA Corp. TransAKT USA will develop and manage all sales, marketing and distribution relationships related to TransAKT mobile POS credit card payment terminals in the United States. Stephen Miller will serve as TransAKT USA's President; Jim Tye will serve as Executive Vice President. TransAKT USA's head office will be based in McLean, Va.

Miller has more than 25 years' experience. For the past 11 years he held several senior management roles within the wireless industry, including sales and financial responsibilities for both direct and indirect sales organizations. Prior to becoming a board member of TransAKT Corp., Miller was the Vice President/General Manager for Nextel Communications. Jim Tye served as the Senior Vice President for a national sales outsourcing firm. Prior to that, Tye was a Senior Account Executive with AT&T General Business Systems with experience in sales and channel development. He has over 15 years of progressive responsibility in sales and sales operations.

TransAKT Corp. filed the documents for closing its private placement. The Company raised $1,065,664.50 as a result of 3,552,215 shares subscribed. Funds from the private placement will be used to implement the business plan for TransAKT USA Corp.

Rueff Named TransFirst Senior VP

TransFirst, provider of transaction processing services and payment enabling technologies, promoted Andrew Rueff to Senior Vice President of mergers and acquisitions. Rueff, who has been with TransFirst since 2000, will continue to drive the company's growth initiatives through strategic portfolio and company acquisitions. Since 2002, TransFirst has grown from approximately $3 billion in annual sales volume to a current rate of $18.5 billion and has added three divisions, including TransFirst Health Services, TransFirst ePayment Services and TransFirst Independent Sales Services.

Rueff served as Vice President of Mergers and Acquisitions for NOVA prior to joining TransFirst. He has played important legal and financial roles in the structuring and financing of more than 35 transactions in the banking, healthcare and transaction services markets.

Schade Joins Q Comm as VP

Fred Schade joined Q Comm International, Inc., as Vice President of Engineering. Schade brings more than 21 years of experience in IT and software development to the prepaid transaction processing and electronic POS solutions company. Schade is the inventor/co-inventor of six technology and business process patents. Most recently he served as the CTO and Vice President of R&D for MediConnect.net Inc. Previously he served as the Director of Software Development for NetSchools Corp. He was also the Director of Software Development for the Waterford Institute and a Software Engineer and Product Manager for IBM.

BOTTOM LINES

• Walt Disney Co. is in talks with Children's Place Retail Stores about purchasing its Disney retail stores in the United States and Canada.

• The U.S. Commerce Department reported retail sales, including those at clothing stores, department stores, health and beauty shops, sporting goods, music and bookstores, and grocery stores in the United States rose 1.2% in May 2004.

• Kmart Holding Corp. signed definitive agreements with The Home Depot, Inc., to sell as many as 24 stores for up to $365 million in cash.