Federal, State and Local Governments Jump Onto The Prepaid Debit Card Bandwagon

It's really no surprise that federal, state and local governments are starting to use prepaid debit cards for all types of payments and disbursements, like child support disbursements. It's all about efficiency, and I think we all like the idea of our government agencies focusing on improving efficiency!

Here's a snippet from an interesting press release that was issued today:

"Fidelity National Information Services (NYSE: FIS), formerly known as Certegy, today announced a three-year exclusive agreement with Official Payments Corp.® , a subsidiary of Tier Technologies (Nasdaq: TIERE) of Reston, Virginia, to issue Visa® prepaid debit cards.

Through its relationships with federal, state and local government entities, Official Payments Corp. facilitates payments between individuals and governments using comprehensive technology solutions. Under the terms of the agreement, Certegy will provide Official Payments with Visa-branded prepaid debit products as part of an initiative to convert government disbursements to electronic prepaid card solutions. The relationship will initially focus on the conversion of child support disbursements, expanding to include additional prepaid debit programs in the future.

Through this innovative solution, child support disbursements will be loaded on prepaid stored value cards, which automatically reload as future payments are received. Official Payments will distribute VISA, Interlink® and Allpoint branded cards. This unique payment program will allow recipients to receive their child support payments faster, with no-cost access to their funds.

'The convenience and cost-saving implications of a prepaid debit card program of this type are significant,' said Gary Norcross, president of Integrated Financial Solutions for Fidelity. 'We are very excited to partner with Official Payments to enable consumers to receive payments in a fast, safe and easy manner.'

'We are delighted to work with Fidelity National Information Services to provide prepaid debit card payment options to government entities across the nation,' said T. Jack Williams, senior vice president, strategic programs for Tier Technologies. 'Their experience and leadership in the transaction processing and payment services industry will enable us to meet the needs of our customers more effectively.'

About Fidelity National Information Services, Inc.
Fidelity National Information Services, Inc. (NYSE: FIS) is a leading provider of core processing for financial institutions; card issuer and transaction processing services; mortgage loan processing and mortgage-related information products; and outsourcing services to financial institutions, retailers, mortgage lenders and real estate professionals. FIS has processing and technology relationships with 35 of the top 50 global banks, including nine of the top ten. Nearly 50 percent of all U.S. residential mortgages are processed using FIS software. Headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, FIS maintains a strong global presence, serving over 7,800 financial institutions and over 100,000 retailers in more than 60 countries worldwide. For more information on Fidelity National Information Services, please visit http://www.fidelityinfoservices.com.

FIS is a majority-owned subsidiary of Fidelity National Financial Inc. (NYSE: FNF), number 261 on the Fortune 500. More information about FNF can be found at http://www.fnf.com.

About Official Payments Corp.
Official Payments Corp., a Tier company (Nasdaq: TIERE), delivers innovative financial transaction processing services to governments, businesses and consumers in the U.S. and abroad. Headquartered in Reston, Virginia, Official Payments' clients are comprised of more than 2,000 federal, state, and local governments and agencies including the IRS, educational institutions, utilities and commercial clients. Official Payments' solutions drive financial transaction processing for a diverse range of markets. From the electronic government payments market Official Payments pioneered in 1996, to the rapidly growing prepaid card industry, to leading-edge markets such as biometric payment systems, Official Payments is committed to making payments go faster, smarter and safer. For more information, visit http://www.officialpayments.com."

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