ATLANTA, GA – Global Payments Inc. (NYSE: GPN), a worldwide provider of electronic transaction processing solutions, today announced that it has acquired a group of European electronic money transfer firms from individual investors. These firms operate collectively under the name Europhil.
Founded in 1989, Europhil was one of the first money transfer firms established in Spain. Based in Madrid, the group operates 26 retail branches in Spain, Belgium and the United Kingdom. Europhil’s vast settlement network includes approximately 1,000 locations in over 20 countries. More than 80 percent of its money transfers are sent to Latin American countries, including Ecuador, Columbia, Bolivia and Brazil. Most of its remaining money transfers are sent to African and Asian countries, including Morocco, the Philippines and India.
“We are pleased to expand our position in the fast-growing money transfer industry,” said Paul R. Garcia, chairman, president and CEO of Global Payments. “With this strategic acquisition, we are entering a new region outside the U.S. with large fund flows into our core Latin American market, in addition to accessing new and attractive money transfer regions in Europe, Africa and Asia,” continued Garcia.
“Europhil is remarkably similar to DolEx in its early stages, with a fixed-cost business model, a dedicated management team and a potential for high growth,” added Raul Limon, who, as president of DolEx, will have responsibility for Europhil. “We are excited about this unique opportunity to combine our strengths and expand our share of these large markets,” continued Limon.
For calendar year 2004, Europhil anticipates approximately $12 million in revenue. Over the long term, Global anticipates strong revenue growth and earnings accretion from this transaction, as the company expands Europhil’s branch presence, enters new fund flow corridors and leverages its DolEx channel. In its second quarter earnings release, Global will update its fiscal 2005 guidance to reflect this acquisition.
Global Payments will discuss this transaction during an earnings conference call on December 23, 2004 at 10:30 a.m. EST. The call may be accessed by calling 1-888-790-1641 (U.S.) or 1-210-234-8000 (internationally), or via the company’s Web site at http://www.globalpaymentsinc.com by clicking the “Web Cast” button. The pass code for callers is GPN. A slide presentation will be available during the call on Global’s Web site, and a replay of the call will also be available on this site through January 12, 2005.
Global Payments Inc. is a leading provider of electronic transaction processing services for consumers, merchants, Independent Sales Organizations (ISOs), financial institutions, government agencies and multi- national corporations located throughout the United States, Canada, Latin America and Europe. Global Payments offers a comprehensive line of processing solutions for credit and debit cards, business-to-business purchasing cards, gift cards, check guarantee, verification and recovery including electronic check services, as well as terminal management and money transfer services. For additional information about the company and its services, visit www.globalpaymentsinc.com.
This announcement and comments made by Global Payments’ management during the conference call may contain forward-looking statements pursuant to the “safe-harbor” provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward looking statements involve risks and uncertainties such as product demand, market and customer acceptance, the effect of economic conditions, competition, pricing, development difficulties, foreign currency risks, costs of capital, continued certification by credit card associations, the ability to consummate and integrate acquisitions, and other risks detailed in the Company’s SEC filings, including the most recently filed Form 10-Q or Form 10-K, as applicable. The Company undertakes no obligation to revise any of these statements to reflect future circumstances or the occurrence of unanticipated events.
