Fidelity National's IPO IsInterCepted

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - (09/10/04) -- Fidelity National Financial saidThursday it would indefinitely postpone the spin-off of itsfledgling financial services unit after agreeing to acquireAtlanta-based InterCept Inc., a processor of electronic and cardtransactions that has been embroiled in a drawn-out proxy battle.Under the deal, Fidelity National will pay $18.90 a share, eitherin cash or a combination of cash and Fidelity National stock, for atotal of $385 million. Fidelity National, the leading provider oftitle insurance in the country, has built a large financialservices operation over the past two years by acquiring AurumTechnology, ALLTEL Information Services, VISTA InformationSolutions, and Sanchez Computer Associates, and had planned tospin-off the unit in an IPO later this year. InterCept was forcedinto selling itself by dissident shareholders after the company'spresident and CEO aborted his own efforts to take the companyprivate.