Acquisition further strengthens First Data's international ATM deployment capability and expands local presence in South Africa
CAPE TOWN, South Africa - August 18, 2009 - First Data, a global leader in electronic commerce and payment processing services, has signed an agreement with Mvelaserve Limited, a Mvelaphanda Group Limited company and Industrial Electronic Investments, a company of VenFin Limited, to acquire CashAxcess, a leading South African ATM deployment company.
CashAxcess has operated in South Africa since 2005. It provides end-to-end, outsourced ATM services to some of the leading banks in the region, including Mercantile, Capitec and ABSA. The company has 200 ATMs currently deployed. CashAxcess also offers a range of ATM products and services to the corporate and retail market, including ATM delivery and installation; signage; wireless GPRS communication; cash management and replenishment services; ATM monitoring; equipment insurance; sales and marketing and training services.
Commenting on the acquisition, George Zafirakis, vice president with responsibility for First Data's international emerging markets, said: "We are delighted to welcome the CashAxcess team into the First Data family. The combination of their considerable ATM expertise and knowledge of the local business environment coupled with First Data's scale and global experience will ensure we can deliver an enhanced service to clients in South Africa."
First Data has operated in South Africa since 1993 offering a full range of payment services to leading banks and retailers.
Estevao Tokata, director with responsibility for First Data's sales organisation in Africa, commented: "ATM outsourcing is a growth area within the South African payments market as banks look to drive more cost efficiencies through their operations. Increasingly, banks are concentrating on building and providing core banking services to their customers while working with specialist partners such as First Data to enhance the breadth of payment solutions offered to their customers."
First Data operates a global ATM business with networks in the United States (STAR and Instant Cash), Asia Pacific (Cashcard) and across Europe (Trionis). In addition, First Data offers ATM outsourcing and deployment solutions for banks and retailers in more than 17 countries around the globe.
About First Data
First Data powers the global economy by making it easy, fast and secure for people and businesses to buy goods and services using virtually any form of electronic payment. Whether the choice of payment is a gift card, a credit or debit card or a check, First Data securely processes the transaction and harnesses the power of the data to deliver intelligence and insight for millions of merchant locations and thousands of card issuers in 36 countries. For more information, visit www.firstdata.com.
Media Contacts
Emma Reynolds
Hill and Knowlton
+44 20 7413 3513
Emma.Reynolds@hillandknowlton.com
Trevor van de Ven
Meropa Communications (Pty) Limited
+27 11 506 7342
trevorvdv@meropa.co.za
