RESTON, Va. - Transaction processor FreeStar Technology Corporation (OTCBB: FRST) has signed a three-year contract for Transaction Network Services AB, a subsidiary of TNS, Inc (NYSE: TNS), to provide high-speed, cross-border data communications between 5,000 point-of-sale terminals in retail outlets across Finland and Sweden and FreeStar's wholly owned subsidiary Rahaxi Processing Oy (Rahaxi).
According to a news release, TNS will route debit, credit, smart card and wireless transactions between Rahaxi's payment processing engine in Helsinki and leading acquirers and issuers.
Rahaxi supports up to 1,000 retailers in Northern Europe and has relationships with many leading Finnish banks.
"By employing TNS' sophisticated and specialized network, Rahaxi can optimize its communication infrastructure," said Paul Egan, FreeStar's chief executive. "The result is a stronger acquiring environment and better service to customers."
By replacing a dedicated leased-line solution with TNS' services, Rahaxi will reduce end-to-end transaction times by as much as 10 seconds for PSTN and five seconds for ISDN, according to the release. Rahaxi also gains the capability to acquire and route transactions anywhere in Asia, Australia, Europe and South America.
