Barclaycard and Barclays Announce One Millionth Contactless Transaction in UK

NORTHAMPTON, England, November 8, 2010 - Barclaycard and Barclays have revealed the growing popularity of
contactless payment technology in the UK, with the total number of
transactions this year now reaching over one million. Since January there has
been a 217% rise in monthly contactless transactions, with over 150,000
processed in September alone.

With 42,500 payment terminals in shops across the UK, there are now more
opportunities than ever for the ten million Barclays and Barclaycard
customers with contactless (
www.barclaycard.co.uk/personal-home/contactless/) cards to make
purchases under GBP15 more quickly and easily. Whilst contactless
transactions remain a small part of overall card payments, increasing numbers
of retailers and banks are committing to the technology, with contactless
card holders predicted to reach 12 million in the UK by the end of the year.*

Stuart Neal, head of payment acceptance at Barclaycard commented: "The
latest statistics on contactless payment show we are reaching a tipping
point. The number of terminals has gone from 25,000 at the beginning of 2010,
to 42,500 today, and this is before the big grocers like Co-operative begin
their roll out in earnest. At a time when every penny counts for retailers,
contactless helps boost customer satisfaction and reduce queue abandonment."

Dan Wass, currents accounts director at Barclays, said: "The range of
retailers offering contactless payments has grown significantly, from
supermarkets, to restaurants to coffee shops all offering contactless as a
quicker and easier option for their customers. Contactless offers a real
alternative for traditional cash transactions, helping to reduce queues and
ending consumers' search for the correct change."

Recent research carried out by Barclaycard and Barclays reveals that
shoppers are less inclined to wait in queues.* According to the research, two
fifths of customers refuse to queue for longer than two minutes, and
two-thirds of customers regularly abandon purchases. Additionally, half (51%)
of shoppers refuse to even enter a store if they see a queue. Contactless
payment systems can reduce transaction times by over a third in comparison to
cash, with the average transaction taking just 12.5 seconds.

Notes to Editors:

* VISA Europe press release - July 5 2010

About Barclaycard:

Barclaycard, part of Barclays Global Retail Banking division, is a
leading global payment business which helps consumers, retailers and
businesses to make and accept payments flexibly, and to access short-term
credit when needed.

The company is one of the pioneers of new forms of payments and is at the
forefront of developing viable contactless and mobile payment schemes for
today and cutting edge forms of payment for the future. It also issues charge
cards and low APR credit card (
www.barclaycard.co.uk/champion/low_rate_credit_card.html) to corporate
customers and the UK Government. Barclaycard partners with a wide range of
organisations across the globe to offer their customers or members payment
options and credit.

Barclaycard also issue credit cards (
www.barclaycard.co.uk/personal-home/index.html) which can help
customers strengthen credit (
www.barclaycard.co.uk/champion/strengthen_credit.html) and help with
credit building (
www.barclaycard.co.uk/champion/credit_building_card.html).

About Barclays:

Barclays is a major global financial services provider engaged in retail
banking, credit cards, corporate and investment banking and wealth management
with an extensive international presence in Europe, the Americas, Africa and
Asia. With over 300 years of history and expertise in banking, Barclays
operates in over 50 countries and employs over 144,000 people. Barclays
moves, lends, invests and protects money for 48 million customers and clients
worldwide.

    PR contact:
    Andrew Bond
    Barclaycard Press Office
    1234 Pavilion Drive
    Northampton
    NN4 7SG
    +44(0)1604-25-1229

www.barclaycard.co.uk

PR contact: Andrew Bond, Barclaycard Press Office, 1234 Pavilion Drive, Northampton, NN4 7SG, +44(0)1604-25-1229