Transcard Becomes Choice Hotels Qualified Vendor for Discover Network® Payroll Cards

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn.--(EON:Enhanced Online News)--Transcard, a leading provider of turn-key prepaid debit and Discover Network-branded prepaid card solutions under the Transcard™ brand, announced today a Qualified Vendor relationship with Choice Hotels International, Inc., one of the world’s leading lodging franchisors with ten hotel brands operating in the United States and 37 countries and territories. Transcard will provide Discover Network branded prepaid stored-value card solutions to Choice Hotels franchisees, which will enable them to pay their employees electronically, and in turn potentially improve employee retention.

“We were pleased that we could help connect Transcard and Choice Hotels to provide a payroll card solution that helps the company’s franchisees streamline their payroll process, while building employee retention.”

“Transcard is excited about the relationship with Choice Hotels, and Transcard is eager to provide benefits to both franchisees and their employees,” said Craig Fuller, CEO of Transcard. “The Transcard payroll platform has the potential to allow significant gains in employee retention and satisfaction for employers because their employees will be paid on-time. We are excited to offer Choice Hotels the opportunity to enliven their franchisees’ operations and streamline their payment methods and cash flow.”

As one of the fastest growing payroll trends, payroll cards offer employees that may not have traditional banking relationships, a safe and convenient way to manage their pay income. Employers also are realizing payroll cards are a cost-effective way for both employers and employees to significantly reduce the costs associated with the payroll process.

According to the American Payroll Association, it costs between $1 and $2 to process, print and deliver a single paycheck and about $9 to replace a lost or stolen paycheck. Additional expenses often include postage or courier fees to distribute paychecks, as well as the cost of tracking and accounting for paychecks once they’re issued.

The Discover Network payroll card program helps significantly reduce these costs by automatically loading funds onto cards issued to each employee, which can then be used anywhere Discover Network cards are accepted. Eliminating paper checks minimizes employers’ exposure to check fraud and removes bank-processing fees for stop payments on lost or stolen checks.

Employees could see significant financial benefits as well. While it can cost anywhere from 2 percent to 10 percent of the check’s value for an employee without access to a bank account to cash a payroll check, payroll cards typically only carry a nominal fee. In addition, employees can access funds immediately every payday, track their payroll information, and use their cards to make purchases everywhere Discover Network cards are accepted.

“Administering payroll can be a time-consuming and costly process for many companies,” said Tom Crowder general manager, Discover Network prepaid programs for Discover Financial Services. “We were pleased that we could help connect Transcard and Choice Hotels to provide a payroll card solution that helps the company’s franchisees streamline their payroll process, while building employee retention.”

Transcard, will manage the Discover Network payroll card program, providing Choice Hotels franchisees with 24/7/365 customer service support, convenient online maintenance of account balances and transactions, and robust reporting that conveniences franchisees and employees alike.

Discover Network payroll cards provide a 100 percent authorization requirement, which further reduces fraud risks and costs for issuers. In addition to the convenience of immediate access to funds, Discover Network payroll cardholders can check account balances in the authorization messages on their sales receipts after every signature-based purchase.

“We feel that the electronic payroll solution offered by Transcard will give franchisees’ employees at their hotels a convenient and secure method to receive their paycheck, particularly if they do not have a bank account to store their earnings,” said David Goldberg, senior vice president, brand solutions, Choice Hotels.

About Transcard

Transcard is an industry leader in electronic transaction processing services both domestically and internationally. Transcard offers electronic funds transfer services including direct-to-card payroll technology, electronic fuel and transaction processing, and global money remittance and payment services. Transcard processes over $960 million in electronic transactions annually and expect to reach $1.2 billion in 2007. www.transcard.com

About Choice Hotels International

Choice Hotels International franchises more than 5,500 hotels, representing more than 450,000 rooms, in the United States and 37 countries and territories. As of September 30, 2007, 872 hotels are under development in the United States, representing 68,853 rooms, and an additional 82 hotels, representing 7,970 rooms, are under development in more than 20 countries and territories. The company’s Comfort Inn, Comfort Suites, Quality, Sleep Inn, Clarion, Cambria Suites, MainStay Suites, Suburban Extended Stay Hotel, Econo Lodge and Rodeway Inn brands serve guests worldwide.

Additional corporate information may be found on Choice Hotels’ Internet site, which may be accessed at www.choicehotels.com.

About Discover Financial Services

Discover Financial Services (NYSE:DFS) operates the Discover Card with more than 50 million cardmembers, the Discover Network with millions of merchant and cash access locations, and the Goldfish credit card business in the United Kingdom. Discover Financial Services also operates the PULSE ATM/debit network, which serves more than 4,400 financial institutions and includes nearly 260,000 ATMs, as well as POS terminals, nationwide. For more information, visit www.discoverfinancial.com.