Discover Financial Services and JCB Announce Alliance; Agreement will Lead to Acceptance of Discover Network Cards in Japan and JCB Cards on the Discover Network in the U.S

JCN Newswires, August 23, 2006

Riverwoods, Illinois and Tokyo, Japan, Aug 23, 2006 - (JCN Newswire) - Discover Financial Services LLC, a business unit of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS), and JCB, the largest card issuer and acquirer in Japan, today announced they have entered into a strategic relationship that will lead to increased card acceptance for both companies.

The two parties have agreed to an arrangement that will facilitate acceptance of JCB cards on the Discover Network in the U.S., and of Discover Network cards on the JCB network in Japan, and acceptance of PULSE cards at targeted ATMs in Japan at the option of the card issuer. In 2007, Discover Network will begin enabling its systems so JCB cardholders will be able to use their JCB cards at Discover Network merchant locations throughout the United States. Upon completion of a JCB system enhancement, Discover Network cardholders will be able to use their cards for purchases at JCB merchant locations and for cash advances at targeted ATMs throughout Japan beginning in 2008.

"This strategic relationship with Discover will bring significant expansion of JCB card acceptance in the United States," said Hiroya Nobuhara, president and CEO, JCB. "The alliance with Discover will provide a great level of convenience for our cardholders who travel to the U.S. In addition, by offering Discover Network acceptance to its Japanese merchants, JCB expects to further strengthen its position in providing credit card payment solutions in Japan."

JCB merchants in Japan also are expected to gain access to the incremental card spend of Discover Network cardholders. Based on U.S. Department of Commerce statistics, Discover projects that more than 1 million Americans will travel to Japan in 2006, and will spend more than $3,400 per trip, on average.

Discover expects this strategic deal will provide new opportunities for many U.S. merchants who will benefit from the spending of Japanese visitors. According to the U.S. Department of Commerce, more than 3.8 million Japanese travelers visited the U.S. in 2005, and spent more than $12.9 billion.

"Our relationship with JCB will facilitate bidirectional international commerce, which will create new opportunities for U.S. merchants to serve JCB cardholders traveling to the U.S. from Japan and other countries," said David Nelms, chairman and CEO of Discover Financial Services. "This agreement also creates value for Discover Network cardholders by expanding acceptance into Japan, which is a key international market"

Discover Network cards already are accepted in other regions popular with U.S. travelers, including Canada, Mexico, and the Caribbean. Discover also recently signed an agreement that will enable the acceptance of Discover Network cards in Central America. Last year, Discover entered into a strategic alliance with China UnionPay to provide acceptance in China and other markets.

The agreement with JCB represents another important step for Discover as it continues to evolve into a broad-based payments company supporting multiple issuers and products, while bringing choice and value to merchants, issuers and consumers. Other key initiatives include: agreements with more than a dozen credit and prepaid issuers to issue cards on Discover Network including HSBC and GE Money; the launch of Discover Debit, Discover's signature debit program; and the acquisition of the PULSE ATM/debit network.

About JCB

JCB is the only global payment brand based in Asia. JCB launched its card business in Japan in 1961 and began expanding overseas in 1981. Its merchant network includes 13.8 million merchants and spans 190 countries and territories. JCB cards are now issued in 20 countries and territories, with 57.70 million cardmembers. As part of its international growth strategy, JCB has formed alliances with more than 350 leading banks and financial institutions globally to increase merchant coverage and cardmember base. As a comprehensive payment solutions company, JCB is committed to providing high-quality payment services to customers, merchants, and partners. For further information, please visit the JCB home page at www.jcb-global.com/english/ or www.jcbcorporate.com/english/.> About Discover Financial Services LLC

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 terminals. For more information, visit www.discovercard.com, www.discovernetwork.com or www.pulse-eft.com.

Source: JCB

Contact:

Discover Financial Services
Leslie Beyer
 1-224-405-5154
lesliebeyer@discoverfinancial.com

JCB Co., Ltd.
Kazumi Kinoshita
 81-3-5778-8390
kazumi.kinoshita@jcb.co.jp

Copyright [c] 2006 JCN Newswire. All rights reserved. A division of Japan Corporate News Network K.K.