STRATEGIC PARTNERS
May 6, 2002
LEAWOOD, Kan. -- Euronet Worldwide has inked ATM Recharge service agreements with UK bank Abbey National plc and Orange, the UK's most popular mobile phone service. This service marks the first time that consumers in the UK will be able to add airtime to their prepaid mobile phones via ATMs, according to a news release.
With the implementation of Euronet ATM Recharge, Orange UK's 8.6 million prepaid customers will be able to add minutes automatically to their accounts at any of Abbey National's 3,000 ATMs in bank branches as well as at remote locations.
Rollout of the recharge service will begin with a pilot project this month, with full coverage across the entire Abbey National ATM network in the UK to be completed by fall 2002.
According to Gordon Webber, Orange head of global distribution, 30 percent of Orange customers in Belgium, where ATM top ups have been offered for three years, use the ATM Recharge. "The growth potential in the UK is huge," Webber said in a news release.
To use the Euronet service, mobile subscribers follow a simple three-step process: insert their bank cards at an Abbey National ATM, enter their PIN, then select Automatic Recharge for their prepaid phones.
Euronet Worldwide offers mobile operators and ATM deployers solutions that enable airtime to be added to consumers' prepaid accounts from ATMs, POS devices and directly from the mobile phone. The company provides its recharge solutions to 11 GSM mobile operators in Egypt, Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Croatia, Norway, Curacao and Indonesia.
