Global Payments Inc. (NYSE: GPN), one of the largest worldwide providers of payment solutions, today announced that it has signed a referral agreement with BitPay, the world leader in business solutions for the bitcoin digital currency. This relationship allows Global Payments to incorporate the cryptocurrency into its product suite and to offer bitcoin payment acceptance to its worldwide merchants.

“We focus on delivering innovative products and services to our global customer base, and this relationship provides us the ability to offer our merchants an integrated digital currency payment choice,” said David Mangum, President and Chief Operating Officer for Global Payments. “We are pleased to partner with BitPay to provide next-generation payment solutions to our customers.”

“This partnership with Global Payments allows ecommerce and retail merchants to easily accept bitcoin payments,” said Tony Gallippi, BitPay’s Co-founder and Executive Chairman. “The cross-border demands of global merchants present a great opportunity for bitcoin acceptance and will allow us to reach more customers in emerging markets.”

About Global Payments

Global Payments Inc. is one of the largest worldwide providers of payment solutions for merchants, value added resellers, enterprise software providers, financial institutions, government agencies, multi-national corporations and independent sales organizations located throughout North America, South America, Europe and the Asia-Pacific region. Global Payments, a Fortune 1000 company, offers a comprehensive line of solutions and services for credit and debit cards, business-to-business purchasing cards, gift cards, electronic check conversion and check guarantee, verification and recovery including electronic check services, as well as terminal management. Visit www.globalpaymentsinc.com for more information about the company and its services.

About BitPay

BitPay is a Payment Service Provider (PSP) specializing in eCommerce, B2B, and enterprise solutions for the Bitcoin digital currency. For more information, go to www.bitpay.com.