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Atlanta, Thursday, November 09, 2000 –
National Data Corporation (NYSE:NDC) announced today it has agreed to acquire Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce's
(CIBC) Merchant Card Services business and to form a ten-year alliance for marketing merchant payment-related
products and services throughout Canada.
Under the terms of the agreement, pending regulatory approvals,
CIBC will sell its Merchant Card Services business to NDC in exchange for a 26.25% equity stake in Global Payments
Inc., once a planned spin-off from NDC is completed.
NDC's Global Payments Inc. subsidiary is a leading U.
S. payment processing and merchant acquiring company. It expects the marketing alliance with CIBC, one of Canada's
largest VISA and online debit acquirers, to significantly broaden its presence in North America. CIBC Merchant Card
Services processes over 800 million transactions per year for over 140,000 merchant locations throughout Canada with
referrals from CIBC's 1,200 branch locations. For the fiscal year ended October 31, 1999, CIBC Merchant Card
Services had net revenue of US$86.6 million and net income of US$13.0 million.
NDC earlier announced plans to
spin-off its eCommerce business segment, which will be named Global Payments Inc., upon receiving a favorable tax
ruling from the Internal Revenue Service and other regulatory approvals. The closing with CIBC is expected to take
place shortly after the completion of the NDC eCommerce spin-off.
"This alliance with CIBC complements our
strategic objectives in the direct acquiring marketplace and expands our global distribution channels," said Paul R.
Garcia, CEO of NDC eCommerce. "CIBC is a major North American financial institution with proven success in marketing
to and serving an impressive base of merchants. This transaction will add to our global scope and scale ( driving
growth and value for our shareholders," he said.
"The alliance provides CIBC an excellent means to expand its
merchant services activities, as well as combine capabilities with an established market leader in NDC," said David
Marshall, CIBC vice-chairman of electronic commerce, operations and technology. "The arrangement is consistent with
CIBC's broader initiatives in electronic commerce and expansion into the U.S. marketplace." Marshall noted that the
alliance would also complement CIBC's industry-leading card issuing business in Canada.
CIBC (TSE:CM,
NYSE:BCM) is a leading North American financial institution offering more than eight million personal banking and
business customers a full range of products and services through its comprehensive electronic banking network,
branches and offices across Canada, in the United States and around the world. CIBC is a leader in electronic
banking, with more than three million electronic banking customers accessing telephone banking, ABMs, PC banking,
and Internet banking at www.cibc.com.
National Data Corporation (NYSE:NDC) is a leading provider of
electronic commerce solutions and health information services that add value to its customers' operations.
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This announcement 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.
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