PULSE Achieves Growth Milestones

The volume of electronic transactions processed by PULSE EFT Association, Houston, continues to escalate dramatically, with a first quarter growth rate far exceeding the overall expansion experienced last year.

PULSE processed a record number of transactions through the first three months of the year, representing a 35% increase over the first quarter of 2003 and well beyond last year's overall 25.5% growth rate. That increase, coupled with PULSE's significant gains in membership and delivery of value-added services, highlighted a stellar first quarter for the electronic funds transfer EFT network.

PULSE achieved the following growth milestones in the first quarter:

• A 44% rise in personal identification number (PIN) debit transactions at the point of sale (POS) compared with the same period last year.
• A 24% increase in automated teller machine transactions compared with the first quarter of 2003.
• Recruitment of more than 110 new member financial institutions.
• Growing enrollment in the network's PULSE Access stored value card program. Institutions of all types and sizes are choosing PULSE Access to provide a range of stored value products customized to their needs, including payroll, family, and gift cards. To date, 31 financial institutions have signed on to the recently inaugurated service.
• Completion of the migration of settlement and report distribution to PULSE's state-of-the-art, in-house platform.

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