ATLANTA, June 27 /PRNewswire/ -- Global Payments Inc. (NYSE: GPN) announced today it has agreed to acquire National Bank of Canada's Merchant Services business and form a ten-year alliance for marketing merchant payment- related products and services to National Bank's customers. This transaction, which is subject to normal Canadian regulatory approvals, will make Global Payments the largest publicly traded, independent MasterCard and Visa acquirer in Canada and will give Global Payments the capability to provide Canadian businesses one source for all of their Visa, MasterCard, debit and other payment processing requirements.

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Global Payments is a leading North American payment processing and merchant acquiring company. It expects the merchant services acquisition and marketing alliance with National Bank, Canada's second largest merchant MasterCard acquirer and a leading Canadian online debit acquirer, to complement its existing Canadian customer portfolio and significantly broaden its presence in Canada. National Bank of Canada processes over 225 million transactions per year for over 73,000 merchant locations throughout Canada with referrals from National Bank's 600 branch locations. With this transaction, Global Payments has now expanded its Canadian distribution channel to over 1,700 bank branches nationwide.

"It is important to Canadian merchants that they have enhanced convenience and simplicity for all of their credit and debit processing needs, including the ability to deal with one company for both MasterCard and Visa acceptance," said Global Payments' President and CEO, Paul R. Garcia. "This transaction also marks another key milestone in our Canadian growth strategy targeted towards enhancing revenue and earnings growth opportunities."

"National Bank is committed to meeting the needs of its customers, including their requirement to have access to strong card-payment solutions," said Real Raymond, President - Personal and Commercial Bank at the National Bank. "Creating this alliance with Global Payments, a recognized industry leader, ensures that our merchants will enjoy the benefits of even more merchant products and services designed to help them run their business simply and efficiently."

Global Payments Inc. is a leading provider of electronic transaction processing services to merchants, Independent Sales Organizations (ISOs), financial institutions, government agencies and multi-national corporations located throughout the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. Global Payments offers a comprehensive line of payment solutions, including credit and debit cards, business-to-business purchasing cards, gift cards, check guarantee, check verification and recovery, terminal management and funds transfer services.

National Bank of Canada (Toronto: NA) is an integrated group whose mission is to provide comprehensive financial services to consumers, small and medium sized enterprises and large corporations in its core market, while offering specialized services to its customers elsewhere in the world. It has assets of over $76 billion and, together with its subsidiaries, employs some 16,700 people. The Bank's shares are listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange.

This document may contain forward-looking statements concerning the Company's operations, current and future performance and financial condition. These items involve risks and uncertainties such as product demand, market and customer acceptance, the effect of economic conditions, competition, pricing, development difficulties, the ability to consummate and integrate acquisitions, and other risks detailed in the Company's SEC filings. The Company undertakes no obligation to revise any of these statements to reflect future circumstances or the occurrence of unanticipated events.

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SOURCE Global Payments Inc.

CONTACT: Betty Feezor of Global Payments Inc., 404-728-3204, or fax, 404-728-3417, or investor.relations@globalpay.com /