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Ukash, a United Kingdom-based firm that sells prepaid vouchers for online shopping, said Tuesday it is expanding its distribution in Australia and New Zealand, along with four European countries, through a deal with Euronet Worldwide Inc., a United States-based processor and ATM operator. The deal will enable Ukash eventually to sell its vouchers via some 11,000 merchant locations in Australia and 2,500 merchant locations in New Zealand, a Ukash spokesperson tells CardLine Global. Consumers in Australia also can buy the vouchers via the Ukash Web site, with the company later planning to offer a similar service in New Zealand, the spokesperson says. The deal with epay, a division of Euronet, also enables Ukash to extend its distribution in Italy, Poland, Germany and Spain. Consumers use the vouchers and their 19-digit codes to purchase goods from merchants on the Web. Ukash and other firms offering similar vouchers sell them to consumers who prefer not to use cards for online purchases or who cannot use cards. Another prepaid-voucher firm, Austria-based Paysafecard Group, also is expanding internationally (CardLine Global, 9 July). "There are only a couple of major players, but the market is becoming more competitive as demand … grows," the Ukash spokesperson says.
