COLUMBUS, Ga.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--TSYS (NYSE: TSS) announced today the formation of a joint venture with Central Payment Co., LLC, which will continue to do business under its current name. TSYS owns 60-percent of the joint venture, and it will operate as a TSYS affiliate.
Central Payment is a privately held direct merchant acquirer — based in San Rafael, California — servicing small- to medium-sized merchants through an Independent Sales Agent (ISA) model. Founded in 2005, Central Payment focuses on merchants in the restaurant, personal services and retail sectors.
“This joint venture with Central Payment enhances our distribution model, with its strong sales agent channel made up of more than 700 active, independent agents,” said Mark Pyke, president of TSYS’ Merchant Services segment. “This move is another example of our focus on growing our merchant acquiring business, and expanding beyond processing.”
“This is an exciting opportunity for us to leverage the expertise of a well-respected company within the payments industry like TSYS,” said Matthew Hyman, co-managing director of Central Payment. “Our partnership expands TSYS’ merchant perspective, and our company culture aligns with their focus on people-centered payments.”
Central Payment is a long-time TSYS client, which currently uses TSYS technology for payment processing. The joint venture will be governed by a board of directors including both TSYS and Central Payment executives. Financial Technology Partners LP and FTP Securities LLC (together “FT Partners”) acted as financial and strategic advisors to Central Payment in this transaction.
About TSYS
At TSYS, (NYSE: TSS), we believe payments should revolve around people — not the other way around. We call this belief "People-Centered PaymentsSM." By putting people at the center of every decision we make, with unmatched customer service and industry insight, TSYS is able to support financial institutions, businesses and governments in more than 80 countries. Offering merchant payment-acceptance solutions as well as services in credit, debit, prepaid, mobile, chip, healthcare and more, we make it possible for those in the global marketplace to conduct safe and secure electronic transactions with trust and convenience.
TSYS’ headquarters are located in Columbus, Georgia, with local offices spread across the Americas, EMEA and Asia-Pacific. TSYS provides services to more than half of the top 20 international banks, is a Fortune 1000 company and was named one of the 2012 World's Most Ethical Companies by Ethisphere magazine. For more information, please visit us at www.tsys.com.
About Central Payment Co.
Central Payment is nationally-recognized as a leading provider of transaction processing services and social marketing software, providing support to more than 40,000 small, medium and large businesses across the United States. It processes more than $3.5 billion in credit card sales annually.
As one of the fastest growing and most innovative payment processors in the country, the company provides best in class service based on 24/7 customer care, competitive pricing and technology-based solutions. Employing a combination of a broadly-experienced staff and an entrepreneurial approach to conducting business, the Northern California-based company is dedicated to maximizing growth and profit opportunities for its customers.
Founded in late 2005, by twin brothers Zachary and Matthew Hyman, Central Payment has rapidly built a national reputation and client base.