Blackhawk Network and Monitise partnership

Blackhawk Network and Monitise to Enhance Mobile Gift Card Purchasing

Pleasanton, CA and London, UK, June 4, 2013 - Blackhawk Network, Inc. (NASDAQ: HAWK), a leading prepaid payment network, and Monitise plc (LSE: MONI), a global leader in Mobile Money solutions, today announced an agreement to make mobile gift card purchasing available to consumers through certain banks and financial institutions in the United States. In addition, the companies intend to expand their relationship into additional markets.

Prepaid gift cards from Blackhawk Network's popular GiftCardMall™ will be available to consumers for purchase from participating banks and payment companies' mobile wallets, powered by Monitise.

With this new relationship, Blackhawk's extensive network will integrate into Monitise's mobile banking ecosystem, making it easier for consumers to purchase Blackhawk gift cards from popular retail brands via mobile. Easier consumer access to Blackhawk's network of content providers is expected to increase engagement with popular retailers and create new opportunities for customers to purchase directly from their participating financial institution's mobile banking platform.

The new partnership provides customers with access to gift cards on the go, making these purchases convenient, building loyalty with their preferred financial institutions, and opening the door to more innovative mobile offerings.

"We believe that consumer demand for gift cards is increasing around the world and with it the expectation that access to mobile offerings will allow consumers to make purchases whenever they want," said Tim Attinger, Group Vice President, Strategy and Innovation at Blackhawk Network. "By working with Monitise, we are helping its bank partners bring great retail brands and consumers together with new revenue opportunities and marketing applications. We are also excited about the overlap between certain of Blackhawk's global content and Monitise's international footprint and aspirations."

"As the demand for mcommerce continues to grow, it is vitally important for financial institutions to increase consumer engagement via mobile devices. This is why we have been so focused on enhancing our platform technology and partner network globally so consumers can bank anywhere, pay anyone and buy anything," said Frank D'Angelo, President of Monitise Americas.

D'Angelo added: "By partnering with Blackhawk Network, we're further integrating major retailers directly into Monitise's rapidly-growing network, linking financial services and retailer marketing into a seamless mobile experience for consumers. In the UK alone, we expect that millions of bank customers could have access to Blackhawk's content via our Mobile Money ecosystem." 

Blackhawk Network continues to build its extensive network of global content providers and distribution partners.  

About Blackhawk Network

Blackhawk is a leading prepaid payment network utilizing proprietary technology to offer a broad range of gift cards, other prepaid products and payment services in the United States and 18 other countries.

About Monitise

Monitise (LSE: MONI) is a world leader in Mobile Money - banking, paying and buying with a mobile device. Leading banks, payments companies, retailers and mobile networks utilise Monitise's technology platforms and services to securely connect people with their money.

Already over 20 million consumers benefit from our patented technology to 'bank anywhere', 'pay anyone' and 'buy anything' accounting for over $30 billion of payments, purchases and transfers annually. More information is available at www.monitise.com

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