Warburg Pincus Acquires easycash from First Data

easycash, the leading German point of sale (POS) Network Service Provider, today announced that financial investor Warburg Pincus, the global private equity firm, has reached agreement with First Data International (NYSE: FDC – News) to acquire 100% of easycash. First Data sold easycash in a competitive auction, which attracted the interest of both industrial buyers and financial investors. The completion of the transaction is subject to approval of the German Federal Cartel Office (“FCO”). The parties agreed to keep the terms of the transaction confidential.

When First Data acquired GZS Gesellschaft fur Zahlungssysteme mbH in June 2006, the FCO stipulated that GZS divest easycash to a third party as part of the merger control clearance.

easycash offers customised card-based payment solutions and credit card routing to a broad range of merchant customers. With more than 700 million transactions in 2005 with a total transaction volume of EUR 43 billion through 165,000 active connected POS terminals, easycash is the market leader in transaction processing in Germany.

Commenting on the acquisition by Warburg Pincus, Siegfried Heimgartner, Managing Director of easycash, said: “We are excited about the opportunity to work with Warburg Pincus, a growth investor with extensive experience in the financial technology sector. Warburg Pincus’ history of building companies over the long term is an excellent fit for easycash and will enable us to continue providing the highest level of service and quality to our customers.”

Christoph Neizert, Managing Director of Warburg Pincus in Germany, stated: “Our in-depth expertise in the financial and business services sector was key to position Warburg Pincus as the company’s preferred partner. We are convinced of easycash’s great potential as the market leader in the German card-based payment sector and will pursue its growth strategy together with the experienced management team who will become shareholders.”

David Yates, President, First Data International, stated: “This sale represents the final step in First Data International’s acquisition of GZS. We are delighted that Warburg Pincus has decided to acquire easycash providing its employees and clients with bright prospects for the future.”

First Data International was advised by Deutsche Bank AG on this transaction.