STRATEGIC PARTNERS
September 16, 1999
HOUSTON--PULSE EFT Association found no glitches during a Y2K testing on Sept. 9. This was good news for the 20 million PULSE debit cardholders who conducted transactions without worry. PULSE, one of the nation's leading shared electronic funds transfer networks, conducted a full-scale rehearsal to gauge just how prepared it is to face the date rollover to 2000. PULSE selected Sept. 9, 1999 because the historically "9/9/99" was a notation used to designate "end of file" rather than an actual date, so the potential for program logic errors existed. PULSE activated its command center activated at 3 a.m. September 8, and again at 3 p.m. with the first transaction dated 9/9/99 to be processed successfully from Korea, which is 16 hours ahead of Central Daylight Time. Periodic checks on the system hardware were performed to ensure that transaction settlements were completed smoothly, according to news reports. A non-profit shared payments network, PULSE serves 2,000 member banks, credit unions and thrifts in Alabama, Arkansas, Colorado, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Tennessee and Texas. The network features more than 52,000 ATMs and more than 199,000 POS terminals.
