WILMINGTON, Del., Aug. 1 /PRNewswire/ -- Electronic Payment Services, Inc.
(EPS) reported continued strong growth in core businesses and a number of new
cooperative business arrangements in the second quarter 1996.  Strong growth
was seen in switch volume, off-line debit processing, ATM installations,
supermarket installations and electronic benefits transfer (EBT) programs.
New records were set at EPS for number of monthly debit POS transactions and
number of monthly switch transactions at both of EPS' subsidiaries:  BUYPASS
Corporation, a major third-party point of sale (POS) processor; and MONEY
ACCESS SERVICE INC. (MAS), EFT processor and operator of the MAC(R) network.
    "As we look for new ways to expand our services and enter new markets,
we're increasingly finding partnerships complementary to our core growth
strategies," said Richard Garman, president and chief operating officer, EPS.
"In the second quarter we announced joint ventures or cooperative arrangements
with home banking providers, a new self-service provider, a hardware
manufacturer and a trade association.  We believe that this approach helps us
to more fully meet our customer needs while helping to open up new markets for
our products."
    Following are some of the highlights of an active second quarter.

    EPS Second Quarter Highlights
    -- Total EPS switch transaction volume was 466 million, up 19% over second
quarter 1995.
    -- 42 new financial institutions joined the MAC network in the second
quarter, for a total of over 100 new MAC members year to date in 14 states.
    -- EPS announced plans to deliver a full line of home banking services via
gateway arrangements with CheckFree Corporation, Intuit Services Corporation
and VISA InterActive.
    -- The Wisconsin Credit Union League & Affiliates selected EPS as the
preferred provider of EFT processing services to Wisconsin credit unions.
    -- 68 financial institutions signed off-line debit card processing
contracts in the second quarter, bringing the total to 250 institutions.  EPS
currently processes over 700,000 off-line debit cards.
    -- 1,843 ATMs were installed during the second quarter, triple the number
installed in second quarter 1995.  Total number of ATMs driven by EPS is
12,422.
    -- BUYPASS announced their selection by VeriFone, Inc. to coordinate Beta
tests for the new OMNI(TM) 470 terminal with selected BUYPASS customers.
    -- Harris Teeter, one of the top 50 grocery store chains in the U.S.,
signed a contract with BUYPASS for debit gateway services at 133 stores.
    -- Over 380 new supermarket locations were installed by BUYPASS in the
second quarter, for a total of over 675 new supermarket installations year to
date.
    -- EPS and Affinity Technology Group, Inc. jointly announced a
re-marketing agreement to market Affinity's automated loan machine along with
EPS' advanced self-service product line.
    -- BUYPASS added North and South Dakota to its EBT program, for a total of
8 states.

    MAC(R) Network Membership Expanding
    MAS total switch volume was 279 million in the second quarter 1996,
consisting of 256 million ATM transactions and 23 million debit POS
transactions.  Year to date switch transactions are 23% higher than 1995.
    Forty-two new financial institutions joined the MAC network during the
second quarter, from CT, IN, KY, MD, MI, NH, NJ, OH, PA, VT, WI and WV.  Year
to date the MAC network has added over 100 new members, bringing total
financial institution membership to 1,987.  There are currently 21,913 ATMs
and 36 million cards bearing the MAC logo.
    During June, EPS hosted a series of 10 regional executive briefings for
members of the MAC network, which were attended by 571 executives from 346
financial institutions.  In addition to presentations on consumer trends and
product enhancements, attendees were able to get hands-on demonstrations of
EPS' new line of PC-based direct banking services, which will be offered
through gateway arrangements with CheckFree Corporation, Intuit Services
Corporation and VISA InterActive.  Attendees were also able to see
demonstrations of the recently introduced automated loan machine by Affinity
Technology Group, Inc.  In June, EPS and Affinity announced a value-added
remarketing partnership to market the automated loan machine in conjunction
with EPS' line of advanced self-service products.

    MAS EFT Processing Continues Westward Expansion
    MAS continued the westward expansion of its EFT processing services with
the addition of 24 new processing customers in Indiana, Ohio, Michigan and
Wisconsin during the second quarter of 1996.  These new processing clients
represent over two-thirds of the 33 new processing
customers added in 9 states in the second quarter.  Other new processing
clients were added in KY, NH, NJ, PA and WV.  Year to date MAS has signed 75
new processing contracts in 11 states.  Processing services sold include ATM
terminal driving, off-line debit card processing and card file maintenance and
authorization.  Facilitating the new processing contracts in Wisconsin was an
announcement in May that the Wisconsin Credit Union League & Affiliates
selected EPS as the preferred provider of EFT processing services to Wisconsin
credit unions.
    MAS also installed 1,843 ATMs in the second quarter, more than triple the
number installed in second quarter 1995.  MAS currently drives 12,422 ATMs and
processes over 700,000 off-line debit cards.

    Debit Drives Strong Growth at BUYPASS
    BUYPASS' second quarter transaction volume was 187 million, up 22% over
second quarter 1995.  This included 28 million debit POS transactions, which
were 46% above second quarter 1995, and 3.9 million electronic benefits
transfer (EBT) transactions.  BUYPASS EBT was expanded to include programs in
North Dakota and South Dakota during the second quarter; BUYPASS now processes
for EBT programs in 8 states:  MD, MN, NJ, ND, SC, SD, TX and UT.
    Harris Teeter, one of the top 50 grocery store chains in the U.S., signed
a contract with BUYPASS for debit gateway services at 133 stores.  BUYPASS
will provide Harris Teeter with access to major national and regional debit
networks, including the MAC network.  BUYPASS added 1,372 new merchant
locations in the second quarter, including 383 new supermarket locations,
bringing the total number of supermarket locations to 7,018 stores.
    Major announcements by BUYPASS during the second quarter included the
appointment of Thomas Tesmer, creator of the POS Technologies Division at
Southeast Switch, Incorporated, as director of product development; and the
selection by VeriFone, Inc. to coordinate Beta tests for their new ONNI(TM)
470 terminal, the first system to integrate payment terminal, PIN pad and
printer functions in a single, compact unit.
    Electronic Payment Services, Inc. (EPS), a privately held company
headquartered in Wilmington, Del., is a leading electronic funds transfer
(EFT) processor in the United States, with almost 2 billion transactions
annually.  EPS is the holding company for BUYPASS Corporation and MONEY ACCESS
SERVICE INC.
    BUYPASS Corporation, headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, is a major third-
party POS processor and leading debit transaction acquirer with annual
transaction volume of almost 800 million.  BUYPASS provides processing for 50
percent of the top 200 grocery store chains in the United States.  BUYPASS
also provides gateway access to 38 credit and debit gateways and electronic
benefits transfer (EBT) programs in
8 states.
    MONEY ACCESS SERVICE INC., headquartered in Wilmington, Del., is a leading
EFT processor to the financial services industry and operator of the MAC EFT
network, the largest EFT network in the United States based on 1.2 billion
switch transactions annually.  MONEY ACCESS SERVICE INC. controls the license
rights for the registered trademark MAC.