TSS Total System Services

PART I

Safe Harbor Statement

We have included or incorporated by reference in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, and from time to time our management may make, statements that may constitute “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.  Forward-looking statements are not historical facts but instead represent only our belief regarding future events, many of which by their nature are inherently uncertain and outside our control.  These statements include statements other than historical information or statements of current condition and may relate to our future plans, objectives and results, among other things, and also include  (without limitation) statements made in “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” in Part II, Item 7 of this annual report.  It is possible that our actual results may differ, possibly materially, from the anticipated results indicated in these forward-looking statements.  Important factors that could cause actual results to differ from those in the forward-looking statements include, among others, those discussed under “Risk Factors” in Part I, Item 1A of this annual report and “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” in Part II, Item 7 of this annual report.

Accordingly, you are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date on which they are made.  We undertake no obligation to update publicly or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect the impact of circumstances or events that arise after the dates they are made, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise except as required by applicable law.  You should, however, consult further disclosures we may make in future filings of our Annual Reports on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form  10-Q and Current Reports on Form 8-K, and any amendments thereto.

internationally.  The United States market for third party processing for credit card issuers is primarily serviced by three vendors, including TSYS, with our largest competitor being a subsidiary of First Data Corporation.  We believe that as of December 31, 2016, we are the largest third party processor for credit card issuers in the United States, based on net revenues derived from solutions for credit card issuers.  Further, we believe that during 2016, we provided issuer processing services for 40%-45% of the domestic Visa and Mastercard credit accounts issued in the United States, approximately 80% of Canadian credit card accounts and approximately 20% of credit card accounts in TSYS’ Home European Markets (UK, Ireland, Netherlands, Italy, Germany and Switzerland).  The principal methods of competition between us and our competitors are system performance and reliability, servicing capability, breadth of features and functionality, disaster recovery capabilities and business continuity preparedness, data security, scalability and flexibility of infrastructure and price.

Merchant Services.  Our Merchant Services segment competes with financial institutions and merchant acquirers who provide businesses with merchant services and related services.  Our primary competitors include First Data Corporation (and its alliances), Vantiv, Inc., Global Payments Inc. and Elavon, Inc.  Additionally, payment networks such as Visa and Mastercard are increasingly offering products and services that compete with our products and services.  We also provide third party processing and related services to merchant acquirers, Independent Sales Organizations (“ISO’s”) and financial institutions.  We believe that as of December 31, 2016, we are the sixth largest merchant acquirer in the United States based on net revenue and one of the top two providers of third party processing services.  The principal methods of competition between us and our competitors include quality of distribution partners, breadth of features and functionality, service levels, system performance and reliability, data security and price.

Netspend.  Our Netspend segment primarily competes with other prepaid program managers to provide underbanked and other consumers with alternative financial service solutions.  Our primary competitors in this space include Green Dot Corporation, American Express Company and First Data Corporation.  As of December 31, 2016, we believe that we are the largest prepaid program manager in the United States based on gross dollar volume (total spending on the accounts we manage).  The principal methods of competition between us and our competitors include diversity and strength of distribution, breadth and strength of innovative features and functionality, quality of service, reliability of system performance and security and price.

Regulation and Examination.  Government regulation affects key aspects of our business, in the U.S. as well as internationally.  In addition, we are registered with Visa, Mastercard, American Express and the Discover Network as a service provider and are subject to their respective rules which subject us to a variety of fines or penalties that may be levied by the card networks for certain acts or omissions. Set forth below is a brief summary of some of the significant laws and regulations that apply to us. These descriptions are not exhaustive and are qualified in their entirety by reference to the particular statutory or regulatory provision, which provisions are subject to change.

Banking Laws and Regulations.  Because we provide electronic payment processing services to banks and other financial institutions, we are subject to examination by the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (“FFIEC”), an interagency body comprised primarily of federal banking regulators, and also subject to examination by the various state financial regulatory agencies which supervise and regulate the financial institutions for which we provide electronic payment processing and other payment related services. The FFIEC examines large data processors in order to identify and mitigate risks associated with systemically significant service providers, including specifically the risks they may pose to the banking industry.

Money Transmitter and Payment Instrument Laws and Regulations.     Our Netspend business is subject to money transfer and payment instrument licensing regulations. We have obtained licenses to operate as a money transmitter in 47 states and the District of Columbia. The remaining U.S. jurisdictions either do not currently regulate money transmitters or have rendered a regulatory determination or a legal interpretation that the money services laws of that jurisdiction do not require us to obtain a license in connection with the conduct of our business.

In those states where we are licensed as a money transmitter, our Netspend business is subject to direct supervision and regulation by the relevant state banking departments or similar agencies charged with enforcement of the money transmitter statutes and we must comply with various requirements, such as those related to the maintenance of a certain level of net worth, surety bonding, selection and oversight of our authorized agents, maintaining permissible investments in an amount equal to our outstanding payment obligations, recordkeeping and reporting and disclosures to consumers. Our Netspend business is also subject to

periodic examinations by the relevant licensing authorities, which may include reviews of our compliance practices, policies and procedures, financial position and related records, various agreements that we have with our issuing banks, distributors and other third parties, privacy and data security policies and procedures and other matters related to our business.

Privacy, Information Security, and Other Business Practices Regulation.  Aspects of our business are also subject, directly or indirectly, to business and trade practices regulation in the United States, the European Union and elsewhere.  For example, in the United States, we and our financial institution clients are, respectively, subject to the Federal Trade Commission’s and the federal banking regulators’ privacy and information safeguarding requirements under the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act.  These requirements limit the manner in which personal information may be collected, stored, used and disclosed.  The Federal Trade Commission’s information safeguarding rules require us to develop, implement and maintain a written, comprehensive information security program containing safeguards that are appropriate for our size and complexity, the nature and scope of our activities and the sensitivity of any customer information at issue.  Our financial institution clients in the United States are subject to similar requirements under the guidelines issued by the federal banking regulators.  As part of their compliance with these requirements, each of our U.S. financial institution clients is expected to have a program in place for responding to unauthorized access to, or use of, customer information that could result in substantial harm or inconvenience to customers. 

Anti-money Laundering and Counter Terrorist Regulation.  The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network of the U.S. Department of the Treasury (“FinCEN”) has issued a rule regarding the applicability of the Bank Secrecy Act's anti-money laundering provisions to “prepaid access programs.” This rulemaking clarifies the anti-money laundering obligations for entities, such as our Netspend business and its distributors, engaged in the provision and sale of prepaid access devices like our GPR prepaid debit cards. Our Netspend business has registered with FinCEN as a money services business. This registration results in our having direct responsibility to maintain and implement an anti-money laundering compliance program.

As are all U.S. persons, we are also subject to regulations imposed by the U.S. Department of the Treasury Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) which prohibit or restrict financial and other transactions with specified countries and designated individuals and entities such as terrorists and narcotics traffickers.  We have procedures and controls in place which are designed to protect against having direct business dealings with such prohibited countries, individuals or entities.  We also have procedures and controls in place which are designed to allow our processing clients to protect against having direct business dealings with such prohibited countries, individuals or entities.

The Dodd-Frank Act.  We and the rest of the financial services industry continue to experience increased legislative and regulatory scrutiny, including the enactment of additional legislative and regulatory initiatives such as the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (the “Reform Act”). This legislation, which provides for significant financial regulatory reform, may have a significant and negative impact on us and our clients, which could impact TSYS’ earnings through fee reductions, higher costs (both regulatory and implementation) and new restrictions on our operations.  The Reform Act, among other things, provides for the regulation and oversight by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (“Board”) of debit interchange fees that are typically paid by acquirers and charged or received by a payment card network for the purpose of compensating an issuer for its involvement in an electronic debit transaction.  In accordance with the Reform Act, the Board capped the maximum U.S. debit interchange fee assessed for debit cards issued by large financial institutions at twenty-one cents per transaction plus five basis points, before applying a fraud prevention adjustment of up to an additional one cent. The cap on interchange fees has not had a significant negative impact on our business.

The Reform Act also created a new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”) with responsibility for regulating consumer financial products and services and enforcing most federal consumer protection laws in the area of financial services, including consumer credit and the prepaid card industry.  For example, the CFPB has promulgated a new rule regarding prepaid financial products, which, among other things, establishes new disclosure requirements specific to prepaid accounts, eliminates certain fees that may currently be imposed on prepaid accounts, and effectively eliminates the ability of a prepaid card provider such as our Netspend business to offer courtesy overdraft protection on prepaid accounts.  The new rule is scheduled to become effective October 1, 2017.  Similarly, other future actions of the CFPB may make payment card or product transactions generally less attractive to card issuers, acquirers, consumers and merchants by further regulatory disclosures, payment card practices, fees, routing and other matters with respect to credit, debit and prepaid cards, and thus

negatively impact our business.  In addition, the Reform Act created a Financial Stability Oversight Council that has the authority to determine whether nonbank financial companies such as TSYS should be supervised by the Board because they are systemically important to the U.S. financial system.  To date, the Financial Stability Oversight Council does not appear to be focused on regulating entities such as TSYS.  However, any such future designation would result in increased regulatory burdens on our business.

State Wage Payment Laws and Regulations.  The use of payroll card programs as a means for an employer to remit wages or other compensation to its employees or independent contractors is governed by state labor laws related to wage payments, which laws are subject to change. The paycard portion of our Netspend business includes payroll cards and convenience checks and is designed to allow employers to comply with applicable state wage and hour laws. Most states permit the use of payroll cards as a method of paying wages to employees, either through statutory provisions allowing such use or, in the absence of specific statutory guidance, the adoption by state labor departments of formal or informal policies allowing for their use. Nearly every state allowing payroll cards places certain requirements and/or restrictions on their use as a wage payment method, the most common of which involve obtaining the prior written consent of the employee, limitations on fees and disclosure requirements.

Escheat Laws.  We are subject to unclaimed or abandoned property laws in the United States and in foreign countries that require us to transfer to certain government authorities the unclaimed property of others that we hold when that property has been unclaimed for a certain period of time. Moreover, we are subject to audit by state regulatory authorities with regard to our escheatment practices.

Employees .  As of December 31, 2016, we had approximately 11,500 employees.

Available Information .  Our website address is www.tsys.com.  You may obtain free electronic copies of our Annual Reports on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, Current Reports on Form 8-K, and all amendments to those reports in the Investor Relations section of our website under the heading “SEC Filings.”  These reports are available on our website as soon as reasonably practicable after we electronically file them with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

We have adopted a Code of Business Conduct and Ethics for our directors, officers and employees and have also adopted Corporate Governance Guidelines.  Our Code of Business Conduct and Ethics, Corporate Governance Guidelines and the charters of our board committees are available in the Corporate Governance section of our website at www.tsys.com under “Investor Relations” then “Corporate Governance.”

For more information about our business see the “Financial Overview” Section on pages 11 and 12, the “Financial Review” Section on pages 13 through 36 and Note 1, Note 2, Note 8, Note 15, Note 21, Note 23 and Note 26 of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements on pages 42 through 52, page 52, page 56, pages 64 through 67, pages 73 through 76, pages 77 through 80, and page 81 of the Annual Report which are incorporated in this document by reference.

know-how to breach the security of the information transmitted in connection with payment processing transactions, and our security measures may not effectively prohibit others from obtaining improper access to this information.  An information breach in the system and loss of confidential information could have a longer and more significant impact on our business than a hardware failure.  We electronically store personal information, such as credit card numbers and related information, about consumers who are customers of our clients.  If we are unable to protect, or our clients or consumers perceive that we are unable to protect, the security and privacy of our electronic transactions, our growth could be materially adversely affected.  A security or privacy breach or a system failure may:

Our financial exposure from the items referenced above may either not be insured against or not fully covered through any insurance maintained by us.  In addition, our ability to attract and retain clients and employees could be adversely affected to the extent our reputation is damaged.  While we believe we use proven applications designed for data security and integrity to process electronic transactions, there can be no assurance that our use of these applications will be sufficient to counter all current and emerging technology threats designed to breach our systems in order to gain access to confidential information or our intellectual property or assurance that our use of these applications will be sufficient to address the security and privacy concerns of existing and potential clients and consumers.

Consolidation among financial institutions and retail clients, including the merger of TSYS clients with entities that are not TSYS clients or the sale of portfolios by TSYS clients to entities that are not TSYS clients could materially impact our financial position and results of operation.

Consolidation among financial institutions, particularly in the area of credit card operations, and consolidation in the retail industry, continues to be a major risk.  Specifically, we face the risk that our clients may merge with entities that are not our clients, our clients may sell portfolios to entities that are not our clients or our financial institution clients may otherwise cease to exist, thereby negatively impacting our existing agreements and projected revenues with these clients.  In addition, consolidation among financial institutions has led to an increasingly concentrated client base at TSYS which results in a changing client mix toward larger clients.  Continued consolidation among financial institutions could increase the bargaining power of our current and future clients and further increase our client concentration.  Consolidation among financial institutions and retail clients and the resulting loss of any significant client by us could have a material adverse effect on our financial position and results of operations.

If we do not successfully renew or renegotiate our agreements with our clients, our business will suffer.

A significant amount of our revenues is derived from long-term contracts with large clients.  The financial position of these clients and their willingness to pay for our products and services are affected by general market positions, competitive pressures and operating margins within their industries.  When our long-term contracts expire, the time of renewal or renegotiation presents our clients with the opportunity to consider other providers, transition all or a portion of the services we provide in-house or seek lower rates for our services.  The loss of our contracts with existing clients or renegotiation of contracts at reduced rates or reduced service levels could have a material adverse effect on our financial position and results of operation. 

Economic and geopolitical conditions could adversely affect our business.

A significant portion of our revenues is derived from the number of consumer payment transactions that we process which may be affected by, among other things, overall economic conditions.  The payment processing industry depends heavily upon the overall level of consumer, business and government spending.  Any change in

economic factors, including a sustained deterioration in general economic conditions or consumer confidence, particularly in the United States or Europe, or increases in interest rates in key countries in which we operate may adversely affect our financial performance by reducing the number or average purchase amount of transactions involving credit, debit, GPR prepaid and other payment-related cards.  Future reductions in consumer spending through credit, debit, GPR prepaid debit and other payment-related card usage through methods that we process, including through an increase in the number of cash transactions, could result in a decrease in our revenues and profits and would likely have a material adverse effect on our financial position and results of operations.

Our ability to anticipate and respond to changing industry and client needs and preferences may affect our competitiveness or demand for our products, which may adversely affect our financial results.

The payment processing markets in which we compete are subject to rapid and significant technological changes, new product introductions, including mobile payment applications, evolving competitive landscape, developing industry standards, and changing client and consumer needs and preferences. We expect that new services and technologies applicable to the payment processing markets will continue to emerge. These changes in technology may limit the competitiveness of and demand for our services.  Also, our clients continue to adopt new technology for business and personal uses.  We must anticipate and respond to these changes in order to remain competitive within our markets.  If we are unable to effectively respond to these changes, the competitiveness of and demand for our services and products will be materially impaired and may result in our services being removed from the payments value chain.  Our future success will depend in part on our ability to anticipate and respond to new competitors and to develop or adapt to technological changes and evolving industry standards on a timely basis.  Our failure to do so could have a material adverse effect on our financial position and results of operation.

The market for our electronic payment services is evolving and may not continue to develop or grow rapidly enough for us to maintain and increase our profitability.

If the number of electronic payment transactions of the type we process does not continue to grow or if businesses or consumers do not continue to adopt our services, it could have a material adverse effect on the profitability of our business, financial position and results of operations.  We believe future growth in the use of credit, debit and GPR prepaid cards and other electronic payments will be driven by the cost, ease-of-use, and quality of products and services offered to consumers and businesses.  In order to consistently increase and maintain our profitability, businesses and consumers must continue to use electronic payment methods that we process, including credit, debit and GPR prepaid cards.

Conversions and deconversions of client portfolios may not occur as scheduled which may negatively impact our financial results.

The timing of the conversion of card portfolios of new payment processing clients to our processing systems and the deconversion of existing clients to other systems impacts our revenues and expenses.  Due to a variety of factors, conversions and deconversions may not occur as scheduled and this may have a material adverse effect on our financial position and results of operations.

Acquisitions and integrating such acquisitions create certain risks and may affect our financial results.

We have acquired businesses both in the U.S. and internationally and will continue to explore opportunities for strategic acquisitions in the future. On April 1, 2016, we completed our acquisition of TransFirst Holdings Corp. (TransFirst”). The acquisition and integration of businesses such as TransFirst involve a number of risks. Core risks are in the area of valuation (negotiating a fair price for the business based on inherently limited diligence) and integration and conversion (managing the complex process of integrating the acquired company's people, services, technology and other assets to realize the projected value of the acquired company and the synergies projected to be realized in connection with the acquisition). In addition, international acquisitions often involve additional or increased risks including, for example: managing geographically separated organizations, systems, and facilities; integrating personnel with diverse business backgrounds and organizational cultures; complying with foreign regulatory requirements; fluctuations in currency exchange rates; enforcement of intellectual property rights in some foreign countries; difficulty entering new foreign markets due to, among other things, customer acceptance and business knowledge of those new markets; and general economic and political conditions.

If the integration and conversion process when acquiring a business does not proceed smoothly, the following factors, among others, could have an adverse effect on our financial position and results of operations, and result in a loss of projected synergies:

● if we are unable to successfully integrate the benefits plans, duties and responsibilities, and other factors of interest to the management and employees of the acquired business, we could lose employees to our competitors, which could significantly affect our ability to operate the business and complete the integration;

● if the integration process causes any delays with the delivery of our services, or the quality of those services, we could lose clients to our competitors, which would reduce our revenues and earnings;

● the acquisition may otherwise cause disruption to the acquired company’s business and operations and relationships with financial institution sponsors, customers, merchants, employees and other partners, as applicable;

● the acquisition and the related integration could divert the attention of our management from other strategic matters including possible acquisitions and alliances and planning for new product development; and

● the costs related to the integration of the acquired company’s business and operations into ours and the financing of the transaction may be greater than anticipated.

A negative perception of our company in the marketplace may affect our brands and reputation, which are key assets of our business.

Our brands and their attributes are key assets of our business.  The ability to attract and retain business clients and consumers to TSYS and Netspend branded products depends highly upon the external perceptions of our company and our industry’s quality of service, use and protection of account holder data, regulatory compliance, financial condition, corporate responsibility and other factors.  Negative perception or publicity, particularly in light of the rapid, widespread use of social media channels, could cause damage to our brands and reputation.

If business clients and consumers turn away from our brand and products, we may be required to incur additional liabilities and costs, result in greater regulatory or legislative scrutiny, and materially and adversely affect our financial position, results of operations and prospects for future growth and overall business.

Our business may be adversely affected by currency, geopolitical and other risks associated with foreign operations and, as we pursue international expansion, we may incur higher than anticipated costs and will become more susceptible to these risks.

We provide services to our clients worldwide.  As a result, our revenues derived from international operations are subject to risk of loss from foreign currency exchange rates.  Revenue and profit generated by international operations will increase or decrease compared to prior periods as a result of changes in foreign currency exchange rates.  We have not entered into foreign exchange forward contracts to mitigate the risks associated with our foreign operations.  In addition, we may become subject to exchange control regulations that might restrict or prohibit the conversion of our foreign currency into U.S. dollars.  The occurrence of any of these factors could decrease the value of revenues we receive from international operations and adversely affect our financial position and results of operations.  In addition, our revenues derived from international operations are subject to risk of loss as a result of social and geopolitical instability and unfavorable political or diplomatic developments which could negatively impact our financial results.

In June 2016, the United Kingdom held a referendum in which voters approved an exit from the European Union, commonly referred to as "Brexit." The referendum has caused, and may continue to cause, volatility in global stock markets and currency exchange rate fluctuations, resulting in a decline in the value of the British pound relative to the U.S. dollar. In addition, it is expected that the British government will begin negotiating the terms of the United Kingdom’s separation from the European Union. Although it is not known what those terms will be, it is possible that there will be increased regulatory complexities, including without limitation regulation relating to data security, privacy, and taxation. These changes may adversely affect our financial position and results of operations.

We may also incur higher than anticipated costs as we expand internationally and grow our international client base.  If we are unable to successfully manage these expenses as our business expands, our financial position and results of operations could be negatively impacted. 

The costs and effects of pending and future litigation, investigations or similar matters, or adverse facts and developments related thereto, could materially affect our financial position and results of operations .

We are from time to time involved in various litigation matters and governmental or regulatory investigations or similar matters arising out of our business.  Our insurance or indemnities may not cover all claims that may be asserted against it, and any claims asserted against us, regardless of merit or eventual outcome, may harm our reputation.  Should the ultimate judgments or settlements in any pending litigation or future litigation or investigation significantly exceed our insurance coverage, they could have a material adverse effect on our financial position and results of operations.  In addition, we may not be able to obtain appropriate types or levels of insurance in the future, nor may we be able to obtain adequate replacement policies with acceptable terms, if at all.  For more information about our legal proceedings, see Item 3 of this annual report.

We operate in a competitive business environment, and if we are unable to compete effectively our financial position may be adversely affected.

The market for payment processing services is intensely competitive.  Our competitors vary in size and in the scope and breadth of the services they offer.  We face direct competition from third parties, and since certain of our larger potential issuer clients develop their key applications in-house and therefore view their system requirements from a make-versus-buy perspective, we often compete against our potential issuer clients’ in-house capacities.  In addition, we expect that the markets in which we compete will continue to attract new competitors and new technologies, including non-traditional competitors who offer certain innovations in payment methods.  There can be no assurance that we will be able to compete successfully against current or future competitors or that the competitive pressures we face in the markets in which we operate will not materially adversely affect our financial position and results of operations.

The market for prepaid cards and alternative financial services is highly competitive and competition is increasing as more companies endeavor to address the needs of underbanked consumers.

When we acquired Netspend, we added an aspect to our business to complement our previous presence in the prepaid processing space to include GPR prepaid and payroll cards and alternative financial services. The alternative financial services industry, including the prepaid card market, is subject to intense and increasing competition. Our Netspend business directly competes with a number of companies that market open-loop prepaid cards and demand deposit accounts through retail and online distribution. In addition, we compete with banks that offer demand deposit accounts and other traditional issuers of debit cards. We also compete against large retailers who are seeking to integrate more financial services into their product offerings. We anticipate increased competition from alternative financial services providers who are often well-positioned to service the underbanked and who may wish to develop their own prepaid card or demand deposit account programs. The increased desire of banks, retailers and alternative financial services providers to develop and promote prepaid card and demand deposit account programs could have an adverse effect on the Netspend portion of our business. We also face strong price competition. To stay competitive, we may have to increase the incentives that we offer to our distributors and decrease the prices of our products and services, which could adversely affect our operating results.

Our Netspend business relies on certain relationships with issuing banks and distributors.  The loss of such relationships or if we are unable to maintain such relationships on terms that are favorable to us, our business, financial position and operating results may be materially adversely affected.

Our Netspend business relies on arrangements we have with issuing banks to provide us with critical products and services, including the FDIC-insured depository accounts tied to the cards we manage, access to the ATM networks, membership in the card associations and network organizations and other banking services. The majority of our active Netspend cards are issued through Meta Payment Systems (“MetaBank”). If our relationship with MetaBank deteriorates, it could have an adverse impact on the Netspend business. If any material adverse event were to affect MetaBank, or one or more of our other issuing banks or if we were to lose MetaBank or one or more of the other issuing banks, we would be forced to find an alternative provider of these

critical banking services for our Netspend business. It may not be possible to find a replacement bank on terms that are acceptable to us or at all. Any change in the issuing banks could disrupt the business or result in arrangements with new banks that are less favorable to us than those we have with our existing issuing banks, either of which could have a material adverse impact on our results of operations and our financial position.  

Furthermore, our Netspend business depends in large part on establishing agreements with distributors, primarily alternative financial services providers as well as grocery and convenience stores and other traditional retailers. Some of these distributors may endeavor to internally develop their own prepaid debit card programs or enter into exclusive relationships with our competitors to distribute their products. The loss of, or a substantial decrease in revenues from, one or more of our top distributors could have a material adverse effect on the Netspend business and our operating results.

Changes in the laws, regulations, policies, credit card association rules or other industry standards affecting our business may impose costly compliance burdens and negatively impact our business.

There may be changes in the laws, regulations, credit card association rules or other industry standards that affect our operating environment in substantial and unpredictable ways in the U.S. as well as internationally.  For example, the new Trump Administration has called for changes in existing regulatory requirements, including those applicable to financial services.  We cannot predict the impact, if any, of such changes on our business.  It is likely that some policies adopted by the new administration will benefit us, while others will negatively affect us.  Until we know what changes are adopted, we will not know whether in total we benefit from, or are negatively affected by, the changes.  More broadly, changes to statutes, regulations or industry standards, including interpretation and implementation of statutes, regulations or standards, could increase the cost of doing business or affect the competitive balance.  Regulation of the payments industry has increased significantly in recent years.  Failure to comply with laws, rules and regulations or standards to which we are subject in the U.S. as well as internationally, including the card network rules and rules with respect to privacy and information security, may result in the suspension or revocation of a license or registration, the limitation, suspension or termination of service, and the imposition of fines, sanctions or other penalties, which could have a material adverse effect on our financial position and results of operations, as well as damage our reputation.  Even if such a change to statutes, regulations or industry standards does not directly apply to us, the effects of such a change on our financial institution clients could result in material, indirect effects on the way we operate or the costs to operate our business and impair the demand for our services amongst our financial institution clients. 

We and the rest of the financial services industry continue to experience increased legislative and regulatory scrutiny, including the enactment of additional legislative and regulatory initiatives such as the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (“Reform Act”).  This legislation provides for significant financial regulatory reform.  The Reform Act, among other things, provides for the regulation and oversight by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (“Board”) of debit interchange fees that are typically paid by acquirers and charged or received by a payment card network for the purpose of compensating an issuer for its involvement in an electronic debit transaction.  The Reform Act also created a new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”) with responsibility for regulating consumer financial products and services and enforcing most federal consumer protection laws in the area of financial services, including consumer credit and the prepaid card industry.  The CFPB recently mandated that supervised financial institutions, including our clients, are required to ensure that their service providers are in compliance with applicable federal consumer laws, which may increase regulatory oversight and our cost of doing business.  In addition, the CFPB has promulgated a new rule regarding the prepaid industry which is expected to negatively impact our Netspend business and thus negatively impact our revenues and earnings.  Furthermore, the Reform Act created a Financial Stability Oversight Council that has the authority to determine whether nonbank financial companies such as TSYS should be supervised by the Board because they are systemically important to the U.S. financial system.  Any such designation would result in increased regulatory burdens on our business.  The overall impact of the Reform Act on TSYS is difficult to estimate. Current and future regulations as a result of the Reform Act may adversely affect our business or operations, directly or indirectly (if, for example, our clients’ businesses and operations are adversely affected). 

With respect to our Netspend business, because each distributor offers prepaid cards and reload services as an agent of Netspend, or another third party, we do not believe that the distributors themselves are required to become licensed as money transmitters in order to engage in such activity. However, there is a risk that a federal or state regulator will take a contrary position and initiate enforcement or other proceedings against a distributor,

us, our issuing banks or our other service providers. In addition, we understand that state banking departments, which are charged with regulating the business of money transmission, have traditionally taken the position that the offering of payroll and other prepaid cards does not constitute money transmission and so we are not required to obtain a state money transmission license in order to engage in this activity. However, even though our Netspend business is authorized to operate as a money transmitter in 47 states and the District of Columbia, there remains a risk that a federal or state regulator will initiate enforcement or other proceedings against us or our issuing banks. If the relevant party is unsuccessful in making a persuasive argument that it should not be subject to such licensing requirements or that it is already licensed to engage in such activity, and is therefore deemed to be in violation of one or more of the state money transmitter statutes, it could result in the imposition of fines, the suspension of the relevant party’s ability to offer some or all of our prepaid cards and related services in the relevant jurisdiction, civil liability and criminal liability, each of which could negatively impact our financial position and results of operations. Furthermore, if the federal government or one or more state governments impose additional legislative or regulatory requirements on our Netspend business, the issuing banks or the distributors, or prohibit or limit the activities of our Netspend business as currently conducted, we may be required to modify or terminate some or all of our Netspend products and services offered in the relevant jurisdiction or certain of the issuing banks may terminate their relationship with us.

In addition, we are subject to tax laws in each jurisdiction where we do business.  Changes in tax laws or their interpretations could decrease the value of revenues we receive, the value of tax losses and tax credits carry forwards recorded on our balance sheet and the amount of our cash flow and have a material adverse effect on our financial position and results of operations.  Furthermore, changes in accounting policies can significantly affect how we calculate expenses and earnings.

We rely on financial institution sponsors in order to process Visa, Mastercard, American Express and Discover transactions. If these sponsorships are terminated and we are unable to secure new sponsors our business and results of operations will be materially and adversely affected .  

In order to provide our Visa, Mastercard, American Express and Discover transaction processing services, we must be either a direct participant or be registered as a merchant processor or service provider of Visa, Mastercard, American Express and Discover. Registration as a merchant processor or service provider is dependent upon our being sponsored by member banks of these credit card companies. If our sponsor banks should stop providing sponsorship for us, we would need to find another financial institution to provide those services or we would need to attain direct participation, either of which could prove to be difficult and expensive. If we are unable to find a replacement financial institution to provide sponsorship or attain direct participation, we may no longer be able to provide processing services to the affected customers, which would have a material adverse effect on our business and results of operations.

If we fail to comply with the applicable requirements of the card networks, they could seek to fine us, suspend us or terminate our registrations. If our merchants or independent sales organizations incur fines or penalties that we cannot collect from them, we could end up bearing the cost of such fines or penalties.

We are subject to card association and network rules that could subject us to a variety of fines or penalties that may be levied by the card networks for certain acts or omissions. The rules of the card networks are set by their boards, which may be influenced by card issuers, and some of those issuers are our competitors with respect to these processing services. Many banks directly or indirectly sell processing services to merchants in direct competition with us. These banks could attempt, by virtue of their influence on the networks, to alter the networks’ rules or policies to the detriment of non-members like us. The termination of our registrations or our status as a service provider or a merchant processor, or any changes in card association or other network rules or standards, including interpretation and implementation of the rules or standards, that increase the cost of doing business or limit our ability to provide transaction processing services to our customers, could have a material adverse effect on our financial position and results of operations. If a merchant or an ISO fails to comply with the applicable requirements of the card associations and networks, it could be subject to a variety of fines or penalties that may be levied by the card associations or networks. If we cannot collect such amounts from the applicable merchant or ISO, we could end up bearing such fines or penalties, resulting in lower earnings for us.

The providers of alternative financial services that distribute our Netspend products are subject to extensive and complex federal and state regulations and new regulations and/or changes to existing regulations could adversely affect their ability to offer GPR cards through their locations, which in turn could have an adverse impact on our business.

The distributors include a large number of companies in industries that are highly regulated, such as payday lending and it is possible that changes in the legal regime governing such businesses could limit their ability to distribute our Netspend products or adversely impact their business and thereby have an indirect adverse impact on our Netspend business. For example, a large number of states have either prohibited, or imposed substantial restrictions upon, the offering of “payday loans” and this activity continues to draw substantial scrutiny from federal and state legislatures, regulatory authorities and various consumer groups. Furthermore, the Reform Act grants supervisory authority over entities engaged in this activity to the CFPB, which is in the process of promulgating regulations which may significantly impact the operations and/or viability of various entities. As a number of our Netspend distributors are engaged in offering payday loans, further legislative and regulatory restrictions that negatively impact their ability to continue their operations could have a corresponding negative impact on our ability to offer GPR cards through their locations, potentially resulting in a significant decline in revenue from the Netspend business.

We are subject to the business cycles and credit risk of our merchant customers and our independent sales organizations.

A recessionary economic environment could affect our merchants through a higher rate of business closures, resulting in lower revenues and earnings for us.  Our merchants are liable for any charges properly reversed by the card issuer on behalf of the cardholder.  Our merchants and ISOs are also liable for any fines, or penalties, that may be assessed by any card networks.  In the event, however, that we are not able to collect such amounts from the merchants or ISOs, due to merchant fraud, breach of contract, insolvency, bankruptcy or any other reason, we may be liable for any such charges which could have a material adverse effect on our financial position and results of operations.

We incur chargeback liability when our merchants refuse or cannot reimburse chargebacks resolved in favor of their customers. We cannot accurately anticipate these liabilities, which may adversely affect our financial results.

In the event a billing dispute between a cardholder and a merchant is not resolved in favor of the merchant, the transaction is normally “charged back” to the merchant and the purchase price is credited or otherwise refunded to the cardholder. If we are unable to collect such amounts from the merchant’s account or reserve account (if applicable), or if the merchant refuses or is unable, due to closure, bankruptcy or other reasons, to reimburse us for a chargeback, we bear the loss for the amount of the refund paid to the cardholder. We may experience significant losses from chargebacks in the future. Any increase in chargebacks not paid by our merchants could have a material adverse effect on our financial position and results of operation. We have policies to manage merchant-related credit risk and often mitigate such risk by requiring collateral and monitoring transaction activity. Notwithstanding our programs and policies for managing credit risk, it is possible that a default on such obligations by one or more of our merchants could have a material adverse effect on our business.

Fraudulent activities by merchants, prepaid card holders or others and losses from overdrawn cardholder accounts may adversely affect our financial results.

We have potential liability for fraudulent bankcard transactions or credits initiated by merchants or others, and our prepaid card programs expose us to threats involving the misuse of cards, collusion, fraud and identify theft.  Examples of merchant fraud include when a merchant knowingly uses a stolen or counterfeit bankcard or card number to record a false sales transaction, processes an invalid bankcard, or intentionally fails to deliver the merchandise or services sold in an otherwise valid transaction. Criminals are using increasingly sophisticated methods to engage in illegal activities such as counterfeit and fraud. It is possible that incidents of fraud could increase in the future. Failure to effectively manage risk and prevent fraud would increase our chargeback liability or other liability. Increases in chargebacks or other liability could have a material adverse effect on our financial position and results of operations.

Our systems and our third-party providers' systems may fail which could interrupt our service, cause us to lose business, increase our costs and expose us to liability.

We depend on the efficient and uninterrupted operation of our computer systems, software, data centers and telecommunications networks, as well as the systems and services of third parties.  A system outage or data loss could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial position and results of operations.  Not only would we suffer damage to our reputation in the event of a system outage or data loss, we may also be liable to third parties. Many of our contractual agreements with financial institutions require the payment of penalties if we do not meet certain operating standards. Our systems and operations or those of our third-party providers could be exposed to damage or interruption from events that may be outside our control.  Events that could cause system interruptions include, among other things, fire, natural disaster, power loss, telecommunications failure, terrorist acts, war, unauthorized entry and computer viruses or other defects. Defects in our systems or those of third parties, errors or delays in the processing of payment transactions, telecommunications failures, or other difficulties  could result in loss of revenue, loss of customers, loss of merchant and cardholder data, harm to our business or reputation, exposure to fraud losses or other liabilities, negative publicity, additional operating and development costs, fines and other sanctions imposed by card networks, and/or diversion of technical and other resources.  In addition, we have a third party risk management process in place through our global procurement program.  If we are unable to effectively manage the risk associated with our third party relationships, it could negatively impact our financial condition and results of operations.

We may experience software defects, computer viruses, and development delays, which could damage client relations, our potential profitability and expose us to liability.

Our products are based on sophisticated software and computing systems that often encounter development delays, and the underlying software may contain undetected errors, viruses, or defects. Defects in our software products and errors or delays in our processing of electronic transactions could result in additional development costs, diversion of technical and other resources from our other development efforts, loss of credibility with current or potential clients, harm to our reputation, fines imposed by card networks, or exposure to liability claims. In addition, we rely on technologies supplied to us by third parties that may also contain undetected errors, viruses or defects that could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We may not be able to successfully manage our intellectual property and may be subject to infringement claims. 

In our rapidly developing legal framework, we rely on a combination of contractual rights and copyright, trademark, patent and trade secret laws to establish and protect our proprietary technology.  Despite our efforts to protect our intellectual property, third parties may infringe or misappropriate our intellectual property or may develop software or technology competitive to us.  Our competitors may independently develop similar technology, duplicate our products or services or design around our intellectual property rights.  We may have to litigate to enforce and protect our intellectual property rights, trade secrets and know-how or to determine their scope, validity or enforceability, which is expensive and could cause a diversion of resources and may not prove successful.  The loss of intellectual property protection or the inability to secure or enforce intellectual property protection could harm our business and ability to compete.

We may also be subject to costly litigation in the event our products and technology infringe upon another party’s proprietary rights.  Third parties may have, or may eventually be issued, patents that would be infringed by our products or technology.  Any of these third parties could make a claim of infringement against us with respect to our products or technology.  We may also be subject to claims by third parties for breach of copyright, trademark or license usage rights.  Any such claims and any resulting litigation could subject us to significant liability for damages.  An adverse determination in any litigation of this type could limit our ability to use the intellectual property subject to these claims and require us to design around a third party’s patent, which may not be possible, or to license alternative technology from another party, which may be costly.  In addition, litigation is time consuming and expensive to defend and could result in the diversion of the time and attention of our management and employees. 

If we lose key personnel or are unable to attract additional qualified personnel as we grow, our business could be adversely affected.

All of our businesses function at the intersection of rapidly changing technological, social, economic and regulatory developments that requires a wide ranging set of expertise and intellectual capital. To successfully compete and grow, we must recruit, develop and retain the necessary personnel who can provide the needed expertise across the entire spectrum of intellectual capital needs. In addition, we must develop our personnel to fulfill succession plans capable of maintaining continuity in the midst of the inevitable unpredictability of human capital. However, the market for qualified personnel is competitive and we may not succeed in recruiting additional personnel or may fail to effectively replace current personnel who depart with qualified or effective successors. Our efforts to retain and develop personnel may also result in significant additional expenses, which could negatively affect our profitability. We cannot assure that key personnel, including executive officers, will continue to be employed or that we will be able to attract and retain qualified personnel in the future. Failure to retain or attract key personnel could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial position and results of operations.

incorporated herein by reference; however, this information shall not be deemed to be “soliciting material” or to be “filed” with the Commission or subject to Regulation 14A or 14C, or to the liabilities of Section 18 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended.

The net asset account balance subject to foreign currency exchange rates between the local currencies and the U.S. dollar at December 31, 2016 was $20.9 million.

The following table presents the potential effect on income before income taxes of hypothetical shifts in the foreign currency exchange rate between the local currencies and the U.S. dollar of plus or minus 100 basis points, 500 basis points and 1,000 basis points based on the net asset account balance of $20.9 million at December 31, 2016.

Interest Rate Risk. We are also exposed to interest rate risk associated with the investing of available cash.  We invest available cash in conservative short-term instruments and are primarily subject to changes in the short-term interest rates.

The following table provides information about our debt obligations that are sensitive to changes in interest rates.  The table presents principal cash flows and related weighted average interest rates by expected maturity dates.  The information is presented in U.S. dollar equivalents, which is our reporting currency.  The debt obligation’s actual cash flows are denominated in U.S. dollars.    

Management’s Report on Internal Control Over Financial Reporting and Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm.  “Management’s Report on Internal Control Over Financial Reporting,” which is set forth on page 83 of the Annual Report, and “Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm,” which is set forth on page 82 of the Annual Report, are incorporated in this document by reference.

Changes in Internal Control Over Financial Reporting.  No change in our internal control over financial reporting occurred during the fourth fiscal quarter covered by this annual report that materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.

Information included under the following captions in our Proxy Statement is incorporated in this document by reference:

      3. Exhibits

The following exhibits are filed herewith or are incorporated to other documents previously filed with the SEC.  Exhibits 10.8 through 10.31 pertain to executive compensation plans and arrangements.  With the exception of those portions of the Annual Report and Proxy Statement that are expressly incorporated by reference in this Form 10-K, such documents are not to be deemed filed as part of this Form 10-K.

We agree to furnish the SEC, upon request, a copy of each instrument with respect to issues of long-term debt. The principal amount of any individual instrument, which has not been previously filed, does not exceed ten percent of the total assets of TSYS and our subsidiaries on a consolidated basis.

Item 16. Form 10-K Summary