Concord EFS to Buy Star Systems Network

Electronic transaction processing company Concord EFS Inc. said it will buy payments network Star Systems Inc. for $863.2 million in stock, creating a coast-to-coast cash machine debit system. The Star network, based in Maitland, Fla., is the largest U.S. payments network secured by personal identification numbers, or PINs. Star has 3,500 financial institutions as members and operates in 22 states, mostly in the West, Southwest and Southeast. Memphis, Tenn.-based Concord, which owns the MAC network used at cash machines, provides transaction authorization, settlement and fund-transfer services to more than 3,300 financial institutions in the Northeast and Midwest. More than 136,000 automated teller machines and 80 million cards carry the STAR brand, while 52,000 ATMs bear the MAC brand. The MAC network processed 1.9 billion transactions last year, while the STAR network processed 2.4 billion. Concord shares closed off 38 cents at $34.13 on Nasdaq.