Discover Financial Services and China Unionpay Launch Second Phase of Reciprocal Acceptance Agreement.Purchase at Qianmen Quanjude Restaurant Begins Acceptance of Discover Network Cards at More than 480,000 China Unionpay China UnionPay (Simplified Chinese: 中国银联), also known as UnionPay (Chinese: 银联) or by its abbreviation, CUP Merchant Locations Across China RIVERWOODS, Ill. & BEIJING -- It was less than a year ago that a landmark transaction at the famous Macy's Herald Square Herald Square is formed by the intersection of Broadway, Sixth Avenue (officially named Avenue of the Americas) and 34th Street in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It was named for the New York Herald, a newspaper originally headquartered there. in New York City New York City: see New York, city. New York City City (pop., 2000: 8,008,278), southeastern New York, at the mouth of the Hudson River. The largest city in the U.S. kicked off the first phase of a reciprocal acceptance agreement between Discover Financial Services LLC (Logical Link Control) See "LANs" under data link protocol. LLC - Logical Link Control , a business unit of Morgan Stanley (NYSE NYSE See: New York Stock Exchange :MS), and China Unionpay (CUP), China's only national bankcard payment network. Today, a single swipe of a Discover Card marks the second phase of the agreement, signifying the acceptance of Discover Network cards at more than 480,000 merchant locations and 90,000 ATMs across China. Just prior to a ceremonial luncheon at Qianmen Quanjude restaurant in Beijing to celebrate the successful implementation of the next phase of the agreement, Discover Financial Services Chairman and CEO (1) (Chief Executive Officer) The highest individual in command of an organization. Typically the president of the company, the CEO reports to the Chairman of the Board. David Nelms purchased a bronze horse with his Discover Card, marking the first transaction using a Discover Network card in China. Last December, Liu Tinghuan, chairman of China Unionpay, and Su Ning, deputy governor of the People's Bank of China The People's Bank of China (PBC or PBOC) (Simplified Chinese: 中国人民银行; Traditional Chinese: , purchased a necktie with a CUP PIN debit card debit card, card that allows the cost of goods or services that are purchased to be deducted directly from the purchaser's checking account. They can also be used at automated teller machines for withdrawing cash from the user's checking account. issued in China, marking the beginning of China Unionpay bankcard acceptance in the U.S. "This historic alliance opens the door for Chinese merchants on the CUP network to benefit from the purchasing power Purchasing Power 1. The value of a currency expressed in terms of the amount of goods or services that one unit of money can buy. Purchasing power is important because, all else being equal, inflation decreases the amount of goods or services you'd be able to purchase. 2. of Discover Network cardholders traveling to China. The number of American travelers in China grew close to 20 percent last year alone," said Wan Jianhua, president and CEO of China Unionpay. "As our CUP cardholders have already been doing for nearly a year in the United States, we are excited to welcome the use of Discover Network cards at our CUP merchant locations beginning in mainland China." Acceptance of Discover Network cards on the CUP network throughout China marks the latest phase of a long-term agreement that the two companies signed in May 2005. "This successful transaction is a testament to the new opportunities that exist for commerce between the growing number of American travelers to China and Chinese merchants," said David Nelms, chairman and CEO of Discover Financial Services. "By broadening international acceptance of Discover Network cards, this transaction further expands the link between the U.S. and China, while providing increased sales volume for Chinese merchants." Discover Network cards are also accepted in other regions popular with U.S. travelers, such as the Caribbean, Mexico, Central America, and Canada. About China Unionpay China Unionpay Co., Ltd. (CUP) is the only national bankcard payment network in China, with more than 900 million bankcards issued on the CUP network. CUP bankcards are accepted in 23 countries and regions, including Hong Kong, Macau, Japan, Korea, Germany, France, and Australia. Approved by the State Council and licensed by the People's Bank of China, CUP is a shareholding financial service institution established through capital contributions by more than 80 domestic financial institutions and a total of 189 member banks, of which 30 are overseas. For more information, visit www.chinaunionpay.com/englishversion. About Discover Financial Services Discover Financial Services LLC, a business unit of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS), operates the Discover Card with more than 50 million Cardmembers, and the Discover Network, with more than 4 million merchant and cash access locations. Discover Financial Services also operates the PULSE ATM/debit network, which serves more than 4,200 financial institutions and includes nearly 250,000 ATMs and approximately 3.4 million POS (1) See point of sale and packet over SONET. (2) "Parent over shoulder." See digispeak. POS - point of sale terminals. For more information, visit www.discovercard.com, www.discovernetwork.com or www.pulse-eft.com. |
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