Electracash Adds TouchCredit's Biometric Verification Technology to Its Online Check Processing Service.

Business Editors/High-Tech Writers

LONG BEACH, Calif. & MARINA DEL REY, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 9, 2003

Electracash, Inc., a leading check processor for online merchants, and TouchCredit Financial Services, Inc., the leading provider of web-based biometric payment solutions, today announced an agreement for Electracash to license TouchCredit's BioApp authentication technology for real-time Account Holder-Present (AHP) verification. Under the terms of the agreement, Electracash will offer TouchCredit's biometric verification as part of its online check processing system. This new feature is available immediately to over 500 of Electracash's existing merchant customers who service several thousand web sites; it is also included in the Electracash Basic ACH payment service for new merchants.

With this new feature, powered by TouchCredit, merchants using Electracash will know that the account holder is present at the time of payment. By using existing hardware devices, such as keyboards, consumers verify their presence during a transaction based upon their unique keystroke rhythm. Standard microphones can also be used for voice verification, or finger scanners can be used for finger print verification.

"After reviewing many authentication and verification technologies, we found that TouchCredit is the most comprehensive solution with usability not found elsewhere," said Lee Falls, CEO of Electracash. "TouchCredit's technology allows anyone with a computer to enjoy the added security of biometric verification, offering the merchant protection against fraud while protecting the consumer's identity. It was important to us that we offer a verification solution for merchants that anyone with a computer can use, not just those with finger-scan devices," said Mr. Falls.

"We are thrilled to have Electracash as a customer. They serve hundreds of merchants, are growing rapidly, and are committed to helping merchants reduce fraudulent transactions, while simplifying the online check payment process," said James Uberti, Chief Architect and Founder of TouchCredit. "By offering merchants an automatic customer identification solution along with their ACH payment service, Electracash is helping to ensure that the person on the other end of the transaction is who they claim to be," added Mr. Uberti.

Payment fraud and the lack of simplicity on the Internet is a growing concern for merchants and customers alike. Internet merchants suffer more fraudulent transactions than traditional merchants because the purchase is made in a non face-to-face environment, where the true identity of the buyer is much more difficult to verify. According to Meridian Research, Inc., about 10 percent of all Internet transactions are fraudulent, as opposed to just 1 percent of brick-and-mortar store transactions. In a similar study, Jupiter Media Metrix reported that consumers believe their credit card is 12 times more likely to be defrauded online.

With TouchCredit's authentication and biometric verification technology embedded in Electracash's check payment system, merchants will be assured that the account holder is present at the time of payment, without the dependence on traditional user names, pins or passwords. Merchants will be offered a solution to reduce costly fraudulent transactions, while consumers will have the ability to control and protect their identity and financial information online.

About Electracash(R)

Electracash is a leading provider of ACH payment processing services. The principals of Electracash have managed corporate services, product development, system deployment and automated collection processing services for major banks in the United States for over 35 years. With the advanced EFT experience of its staff, they are able to provide highly specialized electronic payment and payment collection solutions through the Automated Clearing House (ACH). Visit Electracash on the Internet at www.electracash.com or call 1-562-498-6888.

About TouchCredit(R)

TouchCredit Financial Services, Inc., the leading provider of web-based biometric payment solutions, offers a comprehensive suite of real-time applicant authentication and account holder-present identity verification products to safeguard and simplify electronic payments and other online transactions. The company's unique products and services empower financial institutions, online merchants, electronic payment processors, and other trusted providers with the ability to offer consumers a secure and convenient method for conducting online transactions. Using the simple touch of a finger or sound of one's voice to purchase on the Internet promotes brand differentiation, increased customer acquisition and loyalty, and a reduction in identity theft and fraud. Visit TouchCredit on the Internet at www.touchcredit.com or call 1-800-706-3764.