Exante and MasterCard To Deliver Health Benefit Debit Cards to Insurers Nationwide

HARTFORD, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 22, 2004--

New Card Provides Greater Consumer Choice and Convenience Combines the Popular Health Savings Account with a Prepaid MasterCard(R) Card

“This valuable product, created through our relationship with MasterCard, will help medical benefit providers streamline and automate the administration of their health benefit programs and enhance consumers' choice and convenience”

Exante Financial Services announced today that it now offers its innovative suite of MasterCard(R) health benefit cards, including a new Health Savings Account debit card, to medical benefit providers and insurers nationwide.

Exante's health benefit card programs include applications for Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs) and Health Reimbursement Accounts (HRAs), and also enable verification of health benefit eligibility. The new Health Savings Account (HSA) Prepaid MasterCard(R) Card gives consumers the ability to easily access funds stored in tax-deferred HSAs when paying for eligible medical expenses. Cardholders can also choose to pay for non-qualified health expenses on a taxable basis. Consumers may roll over HSA funds from year to year and may transfer them from one job to the next.

The Exante Financial Services HSA card works like other Prepaid MasterCard cards. Cardholders simply swipe their card through an authorized MasterCard terminal to complete the health-related transaction. The purchase amounts are then deducted from the linked HSA bank account. Exante Financial Services provides cardholders with monthly statements detailing account balance and activity.

"This valuable product, created through our relationship with MasterCard, will help medical benefit providers streamline and automate the administration of their health benefit programs and enhance consumers' choice and convenience," said Nick Santoro, CEO, Exante Financial Services. "Payment industry analysts forecast that in the next five years debit cards linked to HSAs alone could facilitate as much as $2 billion in annual spending, with as much as $9 billion in additional spending occurring through other types of consumer controlled health reimbursement accounts."

"Exante Financial Services is ideally suited to support health benefit providers as they apply electronic and card-based payment solutions to the latest in health care savings programs," said Bill Mathis, senior vice president, member relations, MasterCard International. "Providers of medical plans will be well served by utilizing Exante Financial Services' card issuing and financial services platform."

About Exante Financial Services

Exante Financial Services is focused on simplifying and facilitating financial and administrative transactions for insurers, benefits administrators, consumers and health care professionals. Through their subsidiary, Exante Bank, they offer Health Savings Accounts, card technology and a host of electronic payment and business solutions. Exante Bank, member FDIC, is a Utah industrial bank located in Salt Lake City, chartered in January 2002 by UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH). For more information go to www.exantefinancialservices.com.

About MasterCard International

MasterCard International is a leading global payments solutions company that provides a broad variety of innovative services in support of our global members' credit, deposit access, electronic cash, business-to-business and related payment programs. MasterCard International manages a family of well-known, widely accepted payment cards brands including MasterCard(R), Maestro(R) and Cirrus(R) and serves financial institutions, consumers and businesses in over 210 countries and territories. The MasterCard award-winning Priceless(R) advertising campaign is now seen in 97 countries and in 47 languages, giving the MasterCard brand a truly global reach and scope. For more information go to www.mastercardinternational.com.