STRATEGIC PARTNERS
December 30, 2001
NORTH YORKSHIRE, UK, & LEAWOOD, Kan. -- Euronet Worldwide (Nasdaq: EEFT) has successfully completed certification to the LINK Interchange Network Limited, the national ATM network in the UK.
This certification enables the company to process transactions on 425 Euronet ATMs and potentially on any of the other 33,000 ATMs connected to LINK in the UK.
Until now, Euronet had outsourced the operation of its ATMs in the UK to a local organization. As a result of the certification, Euronet will drive its own ATMs and process transactions from those ATMs through the company's Europe/Middle East/Africa (EMEA) operations center (EOC) in Budapest, Hungary. This result will reduce Euronet's costs in the UK.
By the end of July, Euronet hopes to gain Certified Service Bureau status within LINK, which would enable the company to drive ATMs for other organizations in the UK. Euronet already provides ATM outsourcing services to banks in several other European markets.
"The LINK certification is a significant achievement after an intensive, six-month process," said Miro Bergman, Euronet executive vice president and managing director of the EMEA region. "The coordinated effort between Euronet's UK office and our operations center required, among other things, two operation center audits, establishment of communication links and reconfiguration of our ATMs."
"The LINK organization congratulates Euronet Worldwide on becoming the first to drive ATMs from outside the UK with the successful certification," said John Hardy, LINK CEO. "Euronet has a long track record of ATM processing in many countries, and I think the new services that Euronet will offer in the UK can benefit all current and future LINK members."
"The United Kingdom is an important market for us and promises to be very lucrative, both in terms of ATM operation and potentially ATM driving and transaction processing. I am proud of the dedicated effort made by Euronet staff to achieve this success," added Michael Brown, Euronet chairman and CEO.
