Following Bucharest and Warsaw, the Zagreb office is the third addition to First Data's Central European presence over the past year. First Data is now operational in nine Central European countries where it offers financial institutions and large retailers a wide range of high-quality, competitive electronic processing and support services.

Croatia, Slovenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina are considered key markets for First Data because of their imminent potential for growth in the electronic payments market and their strong link to other European economies in which First Data already operates. This expanded presence will enable the company to support international clients seeking to consolidate their processing across borders.

Over the next 12 months, First Data will establish local operations to deliver support services in Zagreb while leveraging regional processing centres for centralised delivery.

First Data's local management team brings invaluable insight into Croatian, Slovenian, Bosnian and other regional markets. Mr. Domagoj Mandaric, managing director of First Data in Croatia, Slovenia and Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, joins the company from A.T. Kearney in Frankfurt where he was a member of the Financial Institutions Group and led strategic development and restructuring projects for clients in Central and Eastern Europe.

Stefan Klestil, senior vice president and head of First Data's operations in Austria, Italy and 13 Central European countries says: "We are proud to extend our services to international and regional bank groups as well as large merchants into Croatia. We will enable consumers and businesses in these markets as well as adjacent countries to use payment products efficiently, both locally and across borders."