Small Business Owner Optimism Lowest in Five Years but Most Say Credit Available

According to the recent Wells Fargo/Gallup Small Business Index surveyed in November, small business owners’ optimism fell to its lowest level since the survey’s inception in 2003. The score now stands at 10, a 35-point drop since last quarter. The Index has been declining since mid-2007.

“The Index hit a record low last month, which appears to be the result of a sharp decline in consumer and business spending,” said Dr. Scott Anderson, senior economist at Wells Fargo. “Despite the significant decrease in overall optimism, four of every five small business owners said they did not perceive credit as difficult to obtain. It appears that the Fed’s injections of capital and liquidity in the banking system may be having some effect on maintaining credit flow.”

The Index dropped a total of 104 points from its highest score of 114, recorded in December 2006, and 73 points since January of this year. The Index is the sum of “current situation” and “future expectations” of small business owners for six key measures, including financial situation, cash flow, revenues, capital allocation, job hiring, and credit availability. The “present situation” score fell to three this quarter — down 16 points from the last survey conducted in July — and “future expectations” dropped to seven, down 19 points from July. Five out of the six measures contributed to the Index’s overall drop, with “cash flow” showing little change (both for present situation and future expectations).

		Overall Index Small Business Owner Optimism		Present Situation		Future Expectations
Q1 2008 (January)		83		38		45
Q2 2008 (April)		48		18		30
Q3 2008 (July)		45		19		26
Q4 2008 (November)		10		3		7

About the Small Business Index

For the last 22 quarters, the Wells Fargo/Gallup Small Business Index has surveyed small business owners on current and future perceptions of their business financial situation. The Index consists of two dimensions: 1) Owners’ ratings of the current situation of their businesses and, 2) Owners’ ratings of how they expect their businesses to perform over the next 12 months. An Index score of zero reflects that an equal number of small business owners are optimistic and pessimistic about their companies’ situation. Results are based on telephone interviews with 605 small business owners nationwide conducted November 5- 17, 2008. The margin of sampling error is +/- 4 percentage points.

About the Gallup Organization

For more than 70 years, the Gallup Organization has been a recognized leader in the measurement and analysis of people’s attitudes, opinions and behavior. While best known for the Gallup Poll, founded in 1935, Gallup’s current activities consist largely of providing marketing and management research, advisory services and education to the world’s largest corporations and institutions.

About Wells Fargo

Wells Fargo & Company is a diversified financial services company with $622 billion in assets, providing banking, insurance, investments, mortgage and consumer finance through almost 6,000 stores and the internet (wellsfargo.com) across North America and internationally. Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. is the only bank in the U.S., and one of only two banks worldwide, to have the highest possible credit rating from both Moody’s Investors Service, “Aaa,” and Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services, “AAA.”

Wells Fargo is America’s #1 small business lender in total dollar volume according to the most recent Community Reinvestment Act data (2007) and the #1 SBA 7a national bank lender in total dollar volume. Wells Fargo has loaned more than $37 billion to women, African American, Latino and Asian business owners since 1995.

First Data Announces Final Results of Tender Offers for $115.2 Million of Its Outstanding Debt Securities

First Data Corporation announced today the final results of its previously announced cash tender offers for any and all of the outstanding debt securities listed in the table below, which we refer to as the “Notes.” The tender offers expired at 5:00 p.m., New York City time, on December 29, 2008.

The following table identifies for each series of Notes the principal amount outstanding prior to the tender offers, the principal amount validly tendered and accepted for purchase by the Company under the terms set forth in the Offer to Purchase dated November 26, 2008 (the “Offer to Purchase”), and the principal amount outstanding after the tender offers. This information has been provided by Global Bondholder Services Corporation, the depositary and information agent.

Description of Security		CUSIP Number		ISIN Number		Principal Amount Outstanding Prior to Tender Offer		Principal Amount Tendered and Accepted		Principal Amount Outstanding Post Tender Offer
3.9% Notes due 2009		319963AJ3		US319963AJ32		$15,312,000		$4,567,000		$10,745,000
4.5% Notes due 2010		319963AL8		US319963AL87		$21,435,000		$8,307,000		$13,128,000
5.625% Senior Notes due 2011(A)		319963AF1		US319963AF10		$41,666,000		$9,106,000		$32,560,000
4.7% Notes due 2013		319963AH7		US319963AH75		$19,042,000		$3,902,000		$15,140,000
4.85% Notes due 2014		319963AK0		US319963AK05		$6,689,000		$2,875,000		$3,814,000
4.95% Notes due 2015		319963AM6		US319963AM60		$11,012,000		$1,202,000		$9,810,000
(A) Listed on the Luxembourg Stock Exchange

The tender offers were made upon the terms and conditions set forth in the Offer to Purchase and the related Letter of Transmittal, which were distributed to the holders of the Notes.

For additional information regarding the tender offers, please contact: Citi, the dealer manager, at (800) 558-3745 (toll-free) or (212) 723-6106 (collect). Questions may also be directed to Global Bondholder Services Corporation, the information agent, at (212) 430-3774 (for banks and brokers only) or (866) 807-2200 (for all others toll-free). Deutsche Bank Luxembourg SA was the Luxembourg tender agent for the tender offer for the 5.625% Senior Notes due 2011.

The offer to buy the Notes was made pursuant to the tender offer documents, including the Offer to Purchase that First Data distributed to holders of Notes. This press release is not an offer to purchase or a solicitation of acceptance of the tender offers.

About First Data

First Data is a global technology leader in information commerce. The company processes transaction data of all kinds, harnesses the power of that data and delivers innovations in secure infrastructure, intelligence and insight for its customers. With operations in 37 countries, First Data serves more than 5.4 million merchant locations and more than 2,000 card issuers and their customers. It powers the global economy by making it easy, fast and secure for people and businesses around the world to buy goods and services using virtually any form of payment. The company’s portfolio of services and solutions includes merchant transaction processing services; credit, debit, private-label, gift, payroll and other prepaid card offerings; fraud protection and authentication solutions; electronic check acceptance services through TeleCheck; as well as Internet commerce and mobile payment solutions. The company’s STAR Network offers PIN-secured debit acceptance at 2.1 million ATM and retail locations. Through First Data’s centers of excellence, such as security, analytics, customer loyalty and mobile payments, it offers data-driven commerce solutions for customers around the globe.

Notice to Investors, Prospective Investors and the Investment Community; Cautionary Information Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

Statements in this press release regarding First Data Corporation’s business which are not historical facts are “forward-looking statements.” All forward-looking statements are inherently uncertain as they are based on various expectations and assumptions concerning future events and they are subject to numerous known and unknown risks and uncertainties which could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those projected. Important factors upon which First Data’s forward-looking statements are premised include: (a) no adverse impact on First Data’s business as a result of its high degree of leverage; (b) timely, successful and cost-effective consolidation of First Data’s processing platforms and data centers; (c) continued growth at rates approximating recent levels for card-based payment transactions and other product markets; (d) successful conversions under service contracts with major clients; (e) successful and timely integration of significant businesses and technologies acquired by First Data and realization of anticipated synergies; (f) timely, successful and cost-effective implementation of processing systems to provide new products, improved functionality and increased efficiencies; (g) continuing development and maintenance of appropriate business continuity plans for First Data’s processing systems based on the needs and risks relative to each such system; (h) absence of further consolidation among client financial institutions or other client groups which has a significant impact on First Data client relationships and no material loss of business from significant customers of First Data; (i) achieving planned revenue growth throughout First Data, including in the merchant alliance program which involves several joint ventures not under the sole control of First Data and each of which acts independently of the others, and successful management of pricing pressures through cost efficiencies and other cost-management initiatives; (j) successfully managing the credit and fraud risks in First Data’s business units and the merchant alliances, particularly in the context of the developing e-commerce markets; (k) anticipation of and response to technological changes, particularly with respect to e-commerce; (l) attracting and retaining qualified key employees; (m) no unanticipated changes in laws, regulations, credit card association rules or other industry standards affecting First Data’s businesses which require significant product redevelopment efforts, reduce the market for or value of its products or render products obsolete; (n) continuation of the existing interest rate environment so as to avoid unanticipated increases in interest on First Data’s borrowings; (o) no unanticipated developments relating to previously disclosed lawsuits, investigations or similar matters; (p) no catastrophic events that could impact First Data’s or its major customer’s operating facilities, communication systems and technology or that has a material negative impact on current economic conditions or levels of consumer spending; (q) no material breach of security of any of First Data’s systems; (r) successfully managing the potential both for patent protection and patent liability in the context of rapidly developing legal framework for expansive software patent protection and other risks that are set forth in the “Risk Factors” and “Management Discussion and Analysis of Results of Operations and Financial Condition” sections of the Annual Report on Form 10-K for the period ended December 31, 2007, and Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q for the periods ended March 31, 2008, June 30, 2008 and September 30, 2008.

Getting Started in Government Contracting.

President-elect Barack Obama has his incoming team drawing up an economic stimulus plan that is, by all accounts, mammoth. With private work drying up, can small businesses get in on the government contracting bonanza? Mark Amtower, a partner in consultants Amtower & Co. in Highland, Md., says yes -- but they shouldn't expect quick results if they're just starting now. He recently spoke to Smart Answers columnist Karen E. Klein about how small companies can achieve long-term success through selling to the government. Edited excerpts of their conversation follow.

We keep hearing about how much money the government is going to spend on things like infrastructure projects to stimulate the economy next year. Will some portion of that work go to small businesses?

Definitely. These large infrastructure contracts will mostly be administered and bid out by the states, even for things like federal highway projects. So there's plenty of room for small businesses in government contracting, but only if they're selling something the government needs. The good news is that the government buys all kinds of stuff, even personal items for people who are traveling for the government, or moving their families. The bad news is that this is an incremental market. There are no quick hits, and learning the system is not easy or fast.

What advice do you give clients who are interested in getting into government work?

Identify no more than three federal agencies to target and home in on them first. And if you target federal contracts, you should also target state and local contracts in the jurisdictions where you pay taxes. It's a lot easier to raise a stink about the government buying from the big-box guys on the local level than it would be on the federal level.

For very small companies, I always tell them to start local. Putting a face to the company provides the same comfort factor for business-to-government as it does for business-to-business transactions. There are 37,000 government-occupied sites in the U.S. -- not including military installations or postal offices -- so the government is never far away from you. That includes things like the courts, VA hospitals, IRS tax offices, and even the animal and plant inspection guy who's attached to your local university. The blue pages of most phone books identify the government offices near you.

What kinds of companies get local -- or federal -- government contracts?

Name a business, and the government is buying from one like it. The federal government accounts for more than 15% of gross domestic spending. Throw in state and local governments and you get to over one-third of gross domestic spending. There are 20 million full-time government employees, and they are buying from independent office suppliers, companies that build or supply trucking equipment, companies that do grounds maintenance -- you name it. Think of all the post offices and military bases -- who's mowing the grass at those sites? There are a lot of ways that local businesses can play in this market.

Getting into the government contracting pipeline is complicated, as you mentioned. Where can small businesses get help with the process?

The Procurement Technical Assistance Program has 90-some offices around the country whose job is to help small businesses understand the mechanics of selling products or services to the government. They'll teach you the rules and regulations involved, which are substantial. The program is sponsored by the Defense Logistics Agency, and it provides low-cost or no-cost training that's held at universities or economic development agency offices. There's a list of the local centers available here.

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