The year was 2004:

• The CIA admits that there was no imminent threat from weapons of mass destruction before the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
• The last coal mine in France closes, ending nearly 300 years of coal mining.
• The National World War II Memorial is dedicated in Washington, D.C.

Meanwhile . . .

By 2004, we were no longer newcomers to the new frontiers we sought to develop. While we had already established a foothold in these lands, we now could grow a more meaningful presence in two of the most economically important and most densely populated nations on earth, China and India.

Despite a recent and worldwide economic downturn, both nations remain economic powerhouses with rising middle classes. Both seek to improve trade with the West and expand their global standing as significant figures in commerce, which is why both countries continue to represent enormous growth opportunities for our products and services.

China

For more than two decades, China’s growth has been unparalleled, its rise happily coinciding with the entry of our financial self-service products onto its mainland.

Rapid growth has continued, accentuated by China’s admittance to the World Trade Organization in 2001. China’s banks have been opened to foreign competition and its managers have eagerly sought out more financial services at cost-effective prices. Domestically, household savings now top $1 trillion, which has also created a burgeoning demand for advanced financial products and services.

We have answered the call in many ways. We have introduced our ATMs, bulk cash recycling machines and remote teller systems and, at the same time, expanded our sales offices, manufacturing sites and services centers. Our Shanghai manufacturing center is a model of efficient production, complete with centers for exhibition, client services, research and development capability and training.

Today, we serve most of the major banks in China. We also train thousands of bank associates in network management and proper use of Diebold technology.

Promising market potential exists in the areas of upgraded self-service options and security product sales.

Since 2003, Diebold China has announced:

• A deal to assist China Construction Bank (CCB) in 2003 with the expansion of its self-service network through more than 800 ATMs
• More convenient and faster services at the ATM for CCB cardholders, with access to bill payment and electronic funds transfer between foreign currency and savings accounts, and the ability to review stock transactions, account balances, banking statements and advertisements via the ATM
• The installation of more than 1,000 advanced-function ATMs and cash dispensers at the Industrial Commercial Bank of China in late 2003
• The first contract with Bank of Communications (BoCOM) to provide managed services for its nationwide ATM network in China in mid 2004
• Bank of China (BOC) in late 2005 purchased 642 Opteva® ATMs, powered by Diebold’s Agilis® software
• We provided nearly 300 self-service Bulk Cash Recycle Machines (BCRM) to the Bank of China (BOC). This new order came in addition to a multi-million-dollar contract with BOC, to bring the total number of self-service units provided by Diebold to approximately 1,000 by early 2006
• A contract in mid 2007 deployed more than 300 Opteva® cash dispensers that ran on Agilis® software to the Postal Savings and Remittance Bureau (POSB), one of China’s fastest-growing national ATM networks
• Agilis® EmPower™ software was chosen as the platform for the extensive ATM network of Singapore’s largest banking group, DBS Bank
  

India

India remains among one of Diebold’s fastest growing markets, flush with international investments and eager to embrace a future rich with opportunity for both its people and the businesses who serve them.

Since the mid-1990s, Diebold has steadily increased its stake in India, confident that it can provide the improved automated banking services it requires. That’s when many of India’s citizens began to ascend into middle-income brackets and create a need for more advanced technology in retail banking services. That growth continues today.

Diebold has a major manufacturing center in India as well as a major managed services center.

The market potential for sales and service in the country is enormous since bankers embraced the ATM as a service delivery provider and have now moved to establish and maintain large ATM networks. The value of the ATM is only expected to grow in India with the increase of the use of “plastic” (credit cards) for electronic payments and other transactions.

Since 2004, Diebold has announced these significant transactions in its India operations:

• A major contract for the supply of ATMs and services to UTI Bank in India. The order for a minimum of 600 ATMs included turnkey auxiliary services such as site preparation, ATM managed services and ATM upgrades on a contract basis. It was Diebold’s third consecutive order from UTI Bank. Diebold ATMs then comprised 85 percent of the 1,250 ATMs owned by UTI, one of the country’s leading private banks. (May 2004)
• A contract for professional and managed services to the Jammu and Kashmir Bank. Under this contract, Diebold Systems provided around-the-clock, real-time remote monitoring and management from its dedicated managed services center in Mumbai for Jammu and Kashmir Bank’s network of more than 100 ATMs. (June 2004)
• Reached an agreement to supply a financial institution in India with a variety of professional and managed services for its multi-brand network of 180 ATMs. (September 2004)
• We enhanced our manufacturing, services support, software development and sales and marketing activities in India. We also used ergonomics, branch transformation, check truncation, check imaging and end-to-end payment solutions to convert traditional brick-and-mortar facilities into branches of the future. (June 2007)