First Data Corp has acquired back office outsourcing firm Active Business Services (Active) from the Bank of Ireland for an undisclosed sum.
Active provides managed services to UK financial institutions, including data capture, remittance processing, applications management and customer service. It also processes payments for every major UK clearing bank, managing bulk electronic payments for 120,000 SME clients.
First Data says the UK BPO market is expected to increase from £6 billion to £14 billion between 2001 and 2005.
Gerald Hawkins, president, Emea, First Data, comments: "Active's experienced management team has established long-term relationships with a blue-chip client base comprising most of the leading UK financial institutions. There is significant potential for First Data to build on and grow these excellent existing relationships."