Argos Selects VeriFone's PAYware for Secure Frontline Payment Processing

SAN JOSE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--VeriFone Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: PAY) today announced that it has installed one of the largest and most complex card payment systems in the UK for retail giant Argos. VeriFone’s PAYware Merchant system has been rolled out to more than 600 Argos stores in the UK, allowing Argos to process 50 transactions per second – more than 100 million transactions every year.

“As a business-critical system, we were looking for a card payment solution that offered security, speed and reliability. We chose PAYware because of its proven success with other retailers, and the smooth implementation and fast ‘go live’ confirmed that we made the right decision.”

Argos – part of the Home Retail Group which also owns Homebase – has implemented the PAYware Merchant system nationwide as part of its move to EMV Chip and PIN, enabling secure authorization of payments in seconds and providing sophisticated management and reporting capabilities, including a comprehensive audit trail.

PAYware Merchant is ideal for medium- and large-size retailers who need a secure, reliable, and easy-to-implement credit and debit card authorization and settlement solution that supports EMV Chip and PIN. This fully scalable, bank-certified solution provides rapid payment processing that is tightly integrated with any front-end environment and is proven to increase revenue, reduce costs and improve customer satisfaction.

“We saw the move to Chip and PIN as an opportunity to review our existing EFT system,” said Jacqui Glenn, head of Argos IT. “As a business-critical system, we were looking for a card payment solution that offered security, speed and reliability. We chose PAYware because of its proven success with other retailers, and the smooth implementation and fast ‘go live’ confirmed that we made the right decision.”

Nigel Bidmead, managing director for VeriFone EMEA added, “The PAYware Merchant system deserves its excellent reputation as a robust and reliable solution for high-volume environments. We are very pleased to add Argos to the list of major UK retail customers who are gaining tangible business benefits from VeriFone’s card payment systems.”

PAYware Merchant accepts all major cards and supports the latest fraud prevention initiatives, including EMV and 3D Secure for Internet payments. Designed with industry best practices for data security, it enables retailers to become compliant with the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS). All of this guards against fraud and helps protect brand reputation and consumer confidence.

Seamlessly integrated with point-of-sale and back office business systems, a single PAYware Merchant server is capable of authorizing thousands of transactions per minute. This advanced solution supports high availability and resilience to ensure business continuity as well as timely and reliable settlement of collected funds. A sophisticated management console GUI provides secure access to powerful reporting, transaction search, data entry, system configuration and user management capabilities.

Additional Resources:

http://www.verifone.com/products/software/payment_software/pdf/ PaywareMerch.pdf (Due to its length, this URL may need to be copied/pasted into your Internet browser's address field. Remove the extra space if one exists.)

About VeriFone Holdings, Inc. (www.verifone.com)

VeriFone Holdings, Inc. (“VeriFone”) (NYSE: PAY) is the global leader in secure electronic payment solutions. VeriFone provides expertise, solutions and services that add value to the point of sale with merchant-operated, consumer-facing and self-service payment systems for the financial, retail, hospitality, petroleum, government and healthcare vertical markets. VeriFone solutions are designed to meet the needs of merchants, processors and acquirers in developed and emerging economies worldwide.

About Argos www.argos.co.uk

Argos was founded in 1973 and is now the UK's leading general merchandise retailer with sales of over £3.5 billion (financial year April 2004-March 2005). Owned by the Home Retail Group, Argos now has over 600 stores throughout the UK and Republic of Ireland, as well as distribution centres, call centres and its head office in Milton Keynes, employing over 23,000 people in total. Over the next three years, 95% of the GB population now live within 10 miles of an Argos store.

Since it first started, Argos has established a very strong, trusted brand focused on choice, value and convenience. It is the UK number one retailer for toys, small electrical appliances and housewares. It is also a leading player in many other markets including DIY and gardening, consumer electronics and furniture. It also has a significant market share in jewellery and sports equipment.