Agreement to Strengthen First Data's Growing Global Acquiring Business and Global Recognition of INICIS' World Class Payment Services

SEOUL, South Korea, Jan 26, 2007 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- First Data International, a global leader in electronic commerce and payment services, and INICIS Co Ltd, a leading electronic payment gateway for e-commerce transaction processing services in Korea, today announced they formed a strategic alliance to offer merchant processing services to global, online merchants operating in Korea.

Making it easy for merchants to accept payments around the world, the First Data global acquiring solution, enhanced by the INICIS offering, empowers merchants with a global presence to accept payments for Internet purchases, through a single relationship, in most of the world's major currencies.

Under the terms of the agreement, First Data and INICIS will provide on-line payment processing services to First Data's global, e-commerce merchants in Korea. First Data will recruit new merchants and market the alliance's services to the Korean affiliates of its global clients. INICIS will provide cardholder authentication and authorization clearing and settlement, funding, call center support and chargeback processing. In addition, after the transaction is cleared by INICIS, First Data will deliver merchant summary data to the global merchant. The agreement provides a differentiated approach for allowing global merchants to obtain real-time access to the constantly changing demands of Korean consumers.

Today's announcement results from cooperation between First Data and INICIS to develop a joint, end-to-end solution, and in the future, further co-develop advanced e-commerce payment processing services. By collaborating on the technology, marketing and business levels, this agreement will allow both companies to drive new growth opportunities, transform online payment services, increase the scope of services available and reduce complexity for many global merchants.

"Korea has always been an attractive market for global eCommerce merchants, because of the market size, the sophistication of consumers and the widespread use of the Internet," said Nigel Lee, president, First Data International Asia. "This agreement is consistent with the Korean Government's objectives of creating a dynamic Korea that is a financial and economic hub in Northern Asia, and we are honored to join INICIS in this venture. Their superior technology and service will enhance our overall product offering making a strong combined solution to eCommerce merchants throughout Korea."

"By combining our world-class payment processing services in Korea with First Data's truly global reach and capability, we are able to offer global merchants a trusted and integrated end-to-end solution," said Jeon Soo Young, CEO of INICIS. "We look forward to working with First Data to provide an unrivalled merchant processing offering. Together we will invest in developing solutions that meet the demands of the Korean payment services industry, and we will enable global merchants to realize business benefits from this joint effort."

About First Data International:

First Data International, part of First Data Corp. (NYSE: FDC), is a leading provider of electronic commerce and payment solutions for businesses worldwide. First Data International serves a diverse range of markets, leveraging global scale through a local presence and maintaining focus on individual client needs. The company has more than 7,900 employees and operates across Europe, Middle East and Africa, Latin America, Canada, Australia and Asia-Pacific.

First Data Corp. (NYSE: FDC) is a leading provider of electronic commerce and payment solutions for businesses worldwide. Serving 4.9 million merchant locations, 1,900 card issuers and their customers, First Data powers the global economy by making it easy, fast and secure for people and businesses around the world to buy goods and services using virtually any form of payment. The company's portfolio of services and solutions includes merchant transaction processing services; credit, debit, private-label, gift, payroll and other prepaid card offerings; fraud protection and authentication solutions; electronic check acceptance services through TeleCheck; as well as Internet commerce and mobile payment solutions. The company's STAR Network offers PIN-secured debit acceptance at 2 million ATM and retail locations. For more information, visit www.firstdata.com.

About INICIS:

INICIS Co. Ltd. (KOSDAQ:035600) is a leading provider of online payment processing services such as internet payment acquiring, master merchant services and transaction settlement, etc. INICIS offers a comprehensive line of processing solutions for credit and debit cards, bank transfer, corporate purchasing cards, prepaid cards and mobile phone pay.

INICIS processes over US$2 billion annual transaction volume, which represents over 36% of the domestic online commerce payment market. INICIS is maintaining its leadership by providing innovative and reliable payment services to over 16,000 online merchants.

INICIS currently supports domestic and international electronic payment types and comprehensive transaction and settlement reports. INICIS offers its system reliability and security, as it is based on state-of-the-art technologies such as end-to-end security, electronic signature, encryption, and keyboard hacking prevention tools.

INICIS is taking its service to the next level of online payment technology by offering global services to worldwide merchants by aligning strategic partnerships with many global key players in the industry. For more information, visit www.inicis.com.

FDC-1

SOURCE: First Data International 

First Data International
Uhi Hui, +852 2868 0548 or
+852 9183 1178
Uhi.hui@pr-people.com
or
INICIS:
Jeanie Oh, +822 3430 5910 or
+8216 301 8577
Jeanieoh@inicis.com

Copyright Business Wire 2007

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