November 20, 2008 12:07 PM Eastern Time 

Time is Money with New ABnote-LAKS Smart Watch

FORT LEE, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--ABnote, a world leader in secure documents and transaction systems, is now the exclusive distributor of the LAKS Smart Transaction Watch in the United States and Canada.

ABnote-LAKS Smart Transaction Watch:

• Revolutionary New Contactless payment Watch
• Credit / Debit / Prepaid / Gift / Transit
• Personalized just like a contactless card
• Strong Card Issuer Business Case

The ABnote-LAKS Smart Watch is a new payment device that is worn - not carried, so it is always literally on hand, making it quick, convenient, and easily accessible compared to conventional payment cards. Users simply wave the ABnote-LAKS Smart Watch by a conforming contactless payment reader to complete a transaction. The watch can be issued with a traditional companion card linked to the existing cardholder account and provides the option of using either the watch or card for payment.

“ABnote is excited to work with LAKS to give card issuers the opportunity to provide their customers the convenience to pay with this familiar yet unique form factor. This collaboration represents another example of ABnote’s effort to bring the most innovative game-changing products and services to our customers”, says Tim Wright, ABnote’s VP of Product Marketing.

For card issuers, the ABnote-LAKS Smart Watch will provide a “top of the wallet effect”, driving users to utilize their payment account much more often than with a card alone. Contactless enabled payment has been shown to cause cards that were less used or even dormant to become the most frequently used when contactless payment capability was added.

“In addition to showing you the time, the ABnote-LAKS Smart Watch is an extremely quick, convenient, stylish and exciting way for users to process payments. The time has come for more convenient payment methods and with this smart watch, time is now truly money”, says Lucas Scheybal CEO of LAKS GmbH, “With American Banknote, we have a strong and innovative partner for the launch of the LAKS Smart Transaction Watch in the USA and Canada. We are very proud to work together with a company of the quality, experience and innovation of ABnote.”

The watch face can be customized with a variety of colors and graphics providing users with a highly personalized and unique product. The customization provides unlimited opportunities to market the Smart Watch to brands compelling to users-- including sports teams, motor racing, fast food, gyms, bands, beverages, sportswear, designer names and more.

The ABnote-LAKS Smart Watch is designed for contactless transactions and leverages LAKS patented technology. The watch features a slide in system for a SIM sized Smart Card supplied by ABnote. This new cutting edge system makes it possible to handle the watch and the Smart Card separately allowing for a number of benefits to both issuer and user.

Multi applications can be utilized so that financial applications can be alongside others such as Mass Transit or Access Control. In essence, the Smart Watch puts a smart card into the watch and taps the combined market opportunity for both the watch and smart card industries.

About ABnote

ABnote is a holding company and the parent of the ABnote Group, which operates through its subsidiary companies: American Banknote S.A. in Brazil, Leigh Mardon in Australia, ABnote NZ in New Zealand, CPS Technologies in France, ABnote Europe, s.r.o. in the Czech Republic, Keystone Manufacturing in Canada, Proxama in the United Kingdom and American Bank Note Company and Arthur Blank & Co. in the United States. ABnote, which traces its founding to 1795 and American patriot Paul Revere, is a global supplier of secure documents, services and systems. Principal products include secure plastic cards, phone cards, paper certificates, lottery tickets, passports, state titles, certificates of origin, stock certificates, and checks. Services include print production, personalization, secure warehousing, distribution, and fulfillment. For more information on American Banknote, visit www.americanbanknote.com or call 201-592-3400.

About LAKS

LAKS has over 20 years experience manufacturing high quality watches and leads the world in the incorporation of new technologies into watches. In 2006 LAKS launched the first MasterCard® PayPass™ approved watch, which has been successfully deployed by banks around the world. LAKS Smart Transaction Watch 2 provides a wide range of benefits and advances in technology to both card issuer and card holder and is the benchmark for the next generation of contactless transaction watches. Approximately 1.1 billion watches are produced worldwide each year and around 3 billion credit cards are issued. The LAKS Smart Transaction Watch 2 puts a payment card into the watch tapping the combined market opportunity. For more information on LAKS GmbH, visit www.LAKS.com or call +1-43-1-799-15-85.