TSYS® Reports 35.8% Increase in Revenue for Nine Months of 1999

TSYS' Accounts on File Up 93.3% Over Last Year

Columbus, Ga., Oct. 12, 1999 - Total System Services, Inc., (NYSE: "TSS") (TSYS), today announced revenues and net income for the nine months and third quarter ended September 30, 1999. Revenues for the first nine months of 1999 were $390.1 million, an increase of 35.8%, compared with revenues of $287.2 million for the first nine months of 1998. Net income for the first nine months of 1999 increased 30.3% to $48.3 million, up from $37.1 million for the same period last year. Basic and diluted earnings per share for the first nine months increased to $.25, up from $.19 for the first nine months of 1998.

Accounts on file at September 30, 1999, were approximately 199.3 million, an increase of 93.3% from September 30, 1998. The conversion of the Sears 64.5 million account portfolio, as well as the 5.4 million retail card accounts for Nordstrom National Credit Bank, propelled TSYS to become the nation's largest processor of private-label cards. By the end of the year, TSYS expects to have over 200 million accounts on file.

Revenues for the third quarter of 1999 were $137.8 million, an increase of 38.7%, compared with revenues of $99.4 million for the third quarter of 1998. Net income for the quarter increased 11.6% to $16.9 million, up from $15.2 million, for the same period last year. Basic and diluted earnings per share for the third quarter of 1999 increased to $.09, up from $.08 for the third quarter of 1998. Expense growth in the third quarter of 1999 versus the same quarter 1998 is attributed to the conversion expenses for Sears, Canadian Tire, and Nordstrom; the move into the new riverfront campus; a new data processing center; a new card production facility; and the establishment of a new international office in London.

TSYS reaffirmed that it expects its 1999 net income to exceed its 1998 net income by at least 23 percent, exceeding the current consensus estimate of a 20 percent increase in 1999 over 1998. Additionally, TSYS expects its 2000 net income to exceed its 1999 projected net income by at least 13 - 15 percent, versus the current consensus estimate of a six percent increase in 2000 over 1999 net income.

Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer Richard W. Ussery said, "We are pleased to announce our financial results for the third quarter and first nine months of 1999. During the quarter, we officially opened the first phase of our Riverfront Campus after 24 months of development. We were also delighted to extend our processing contract with Bank of America to continue processing its portfolio until 2009."

Ussery continued, "Internationally, we signed and converted the portfolios for C&A in Mexico and Bancahsa in Honduras. We furthered our expansion into new markets with the agreement to purchase a 40 percent equity position in Prepaid Technologies, LLC - a product development and sales company for stored value cards. As the year draws to a close, we are pleased with our preparation for Y2K and anticipate a smooth transition into the new millennium."

At the end of the third quarter 1999, TSYS was processing approximately 143.3 million of its 199.3 million accounts on TS2, the industry's most technologically advanced system designed in the 1990s. TS2 grants issuers the control to quickly implement marketing programs to increase revenues, reduce operating expenses and charge-offs, and better manage their card portfolios.

TSYS is a global processor of data, transactions and payments for credit, debit, commercial and private-label card issuers. TSYS' sophisticated systems offer online accounting, data processing, electronic commerce services, portfolio management, account acquisition, credit evaluation, risk management and customer service. Through its family of companies, TSYS services the entire lifecycle of accounts, processing more than 199.3 million accounts and making it possible for an estimated 275.3 million people to use their cards anytime, anywhere. Headquartered in Columbus, Ga., TSYS (www.totalsystem.com) is an 80.8 percent owned subsidiary of Synovus Financial Corp., (NYSE: "SNV") (www.synovus.com) named the Best Company to Work for in America by FORTUNE magazine.

Contacts:
James B. Lipham
Chief Financial Officer
ph. (706) 649-2262

Patrick A. Reynolds
Director of Investor Relations
ph. (706) 649-4973
snvir@synovus.com