PURCHASE, N.Y. and CINCINNATI, Feb. 10 /PRNewswire/ -- Fifth Third Bank and MasterCard Worldwide, a leading global payments solutions provider, today announced the availability of a solution that will change corporate purchasing for Fifth Third's commercial clients. Fifth Third Bank will utilize MasterCard's powerful inControl service to offer Purchase Control from MasterCard, a tool that provides a level of control and flexibility in payments management.

With MasterCard Purchase Control, Fifth Third Bank will offer corporate clients enhanced global controls and increased transaction security that combines an integrated preapproval process with secure virtual account numbers. Also, the seamless integration of the Purchase Control application into existing corporate financial infrastructures will enable improved transparency through spend controls, comprehensive administrative tools, as well as enhanced transaction reporting and reconciliation capabilities that may reduce supplier misuse and the risk of card fraud.

"Against the backdrop of an economy where corporations are seeking to find the best ways to efficiently track their spending while ensuring transparency, security and compliance, MasterCard's Purchase Control is the application that our commercial clients are looking for," said Jeff Ficke, senior vice president, Director of Treasury Management for Fifth Third Bank. "This product will allow our commercial clients enhanced transaction control and security with minimal investment and IT support required."

Furthermore, MasterCard Purchase Control provides a flexible solution that enables organizations to face competing strategic goals head on by allowing them to optimize their commercial payments programs in a way that provides employees with efficient tools, while also helping to effectively control spending, and promoting compliance for both employees and suppliers.

"As organizations seek new solutions that will help them to look ahead through the recovery and increase financial control, we are happy to work with Fifth Third Bank to offer a solution that helps meet these goals," said Joshua Peirez, Group Executive, Innovative Platforms, MasterCard Worldwide. "Leveraging our innovative inControl service, Fifth Third Bank will help its clients streamline complex processes, help decrease the number of payments made with cash and checks, and increase the number of secure transactions made with electronic payments."

About MasterCard inControl

MasterCard inControl is an innovative, flexible service which enables issuers to easily introduce payment products that offer unparalleled controls and real-time alerts to both consumer and commercial cardholders. The suite of inControl offerings satisfies strong end-user needs for security and controlled access to spending accounts, while providing cost-efficiencies and speed-to-market for issuers and no need for any changes in the payment process at the merchant. MasterCard inControl builds on MasterCard's unparalleled global processing platform.

About MasterCard Purchase Control

With MasterCard Purchase Control, corporations can gain transaction security, increased operational efficiency, reduced fraud exposure and expert tools for budget control. MasterCard Purchase Control provides corporations with the ability to:

• Set authorization controls that enable managers to define specific spending parameters for their employees while allowing flexibility for emergencies;
• Receive real-time alerts to safeguard against over-spending and maverick spending;
• Establish pre-purchase compliance with corporate spending policies at the front-end in combination with optimized MIS reporting on the back-end;
• Gain efficiencies by simplifying the reconciliation process through the use of Virtual Numbers and Limited Use Numbers to uniquely identify each transaction.

About MasterCard

MasterCard Worldwide advances global commerce by providing a critical economic link among financial institutions, businesses, cardholders and merchants worldwide. As a franchisor, processor and advisor, MasterCard develops and markets payment solutions, processes approximately 22 billion transactions each year, and provides industry-leading analysis and consulting services to financial-institution customers and merchants. Powered by the MasterCard Worldwide Network and through its family of brands, including MasterCard®, Maestro® and Cirrus®, MasterCard serves consumers and businesses in more than 210 countries and territories. For more information go to www.mastercard.com.

About Fifth Third Bank

Fifth Third Bancorp is a diversified financial services company headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio. The Company has $113 billion in assets, operates 16 affiliates with 1,309 full-service Banking Centers, including 103 Bank Mart® locations open seven days a week inside select grocery stores and 2,358 ATMs in Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, Michigan, Illinois, Florida, Tennessee, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Missouri, Georgia and North Carolina. Fifth Third operates four main businesses: Commercial Banking, Branch Banking, Consumer Lending, and Investment Advisors. Fifth Third also has a 49% interest in Fifth Third Processing Solutions, LLC. Fifth Third is among the largest money managers in the Midwest and, as of December 31, 2009, has $187 billion in assets under care, of which it managed $25 billion for individuals, corporations and not-for-profit organizations. Investor information and press releases can be viewed at www.53.com. Fifth Third's common stock is traded on the NASDAQ® National Global Select Market under the symbol "FITB." Member FDIC

Contacts:

Barbara Coleman, MasterCard Worldwide, Phone: 914-249-6607, Email: Barbara_coleman@mastercard.com

Whitney Ellis, Fifth Third Bank, Phone: 513-534-6791, Email: whitney.ellis@53.com

SOURCE MasterCard Worldwide