TSYS® Signs Ireland’s Largest Bank, Allied Irish Banks
Agreement Marks TSYS’ Target for International Growth
Columbus, Ga., Dec. 8, 2000 – Total System Services, Inc.®, (TSYS®) (NYSE: "TSS"), won its second major European contract in less than four months with a five-year agreement to process the card accounts of Allied Irish Banks, p.l.c. (AIB) (NYSE: "AIB pr"). AIB will convert more than a half million retail and commercial credit cards in the Republic of Ireland and United Kingdom from its inhouse system to the industry-leading TS2® system by June 2001.
"AIB is an impressive bank with an excellent growth strategy for the future. We are delighted to be selected as the processor for AIB and look forward to an exceptional relationship," said Bruce Bacon, Managing Director of TSYS Europe. "The AIB selection of TSYS represents an important strategic accomplishment for TSYS and further affirms the value of the significant preparation which we have initiated for the European issuing market." International growth is one of TSYS’ four strategic initiatives and TSYS projects its revenues from international expansion will represent 20 percent of TSYS’ overall revenues by 2003.
"TSYS has an impressive history of outstanding customer service and product innovation. The TS2 platform met our stringent requirements for superior functionality and allows AIB to provide the best in customer service to AIB cardholders," said Joe Healy, Director of Card Services at AIB. "The relationship with TSYS will support our goals to continue our leadership in the cards business."
For the fourth straight time, AIB was voted the best business bank in Britain in a survey conducted for the Forum of Private Business (FPB). Noted for its excellent customer relationships, customer loyalty and experience, this survey of more than 10,000 businesses shows AIB five percent ahead of its nearest competitor.
About Allied Irish Banks, p.l.c.
Allied Irish Banks, p.l.c., traces its roots in Ireland to the late 1800s and is the first financial corporation in Ireland to offer mobile phone banking services. AIB, the largest bank in Ireland and one of the top 150 banks in the world, has total assets of $60 billion with 34 percent of the asset base in the United States where AIB is the only Irish retail bank. As Ireland’s leading financial service organization, AIB operates primarily in Ireland, Britain, the United States, Poland and Asia. AIB employs more than 31,000 people in more than 1,000 offices and issues cards in three currencies: the Irish punt, British Sterling and the EU Euro. AIB also processes credit and debit card transactions for more than 20,000 merchants in the Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland and Great Britain. The company’s ordinary shares (symbol AIB) and non-cumulative preference shares (symbol AIB Pr) are traded in the USA on the New York Stock Exchange in the form of American Depository Shares (ADS) and each ADS is evidenced by an American Depository Receipt (ADR).
About Total System Services, Inc.
TSYS provides global commerce solutions. With more than 191 million accounts on file, TSYS facilitates the payment exchange between buyers and sellers. TSYS and its family of companies offer a full range of acquiring and issuing business services from accepting electronic payments for goods and services to credit applications and collections for credit, debit, commercial, stored value, retail and chip accounts. TSYS has offices in the United States, Europe, Mexico, Canada and Japan, and processes in 21 countries and 12 currencies. Based in Columbus, Ga., TSYS (NYSE: "TSS") (www.totalsystem.com) is an 80.8 percent-owned subsidiary of Synovus Financial Corp. (NYSE: "SNV") (www.synovus.com), No. 5 on FORTUNE magazine’s list of "The 100 Best Companies To Work For" in 2000. For more information, contact news@totalsystem.com.
Contacts:
Danita Gibson-Lloyd
Corporate Communications Manager
Total System Services, Inc.
ph. (706) 649-5578
dglloyd@totalsystem.com
Paul White
AIB Public Relations Advisor
Allied Irish Banks, plc
ph. 00 353 12697736
paul@whitepr.net
Leo Berard
Investor Relations Manager
ph. (706) 644-6081
Leoberard@synovus.com