RIVERWOODS, Illinois and HOUSTON – The 4,100 member financial institutions in the PULSE EFT Association, about 1,000 of whom are credit unions, have approved overwhelmingly the proposition that they will become the first financial institution partners with Discover Financial Services. Cindy Ballard, executive vice president with PULSE could not say what the exact was in favor of the merger, but said it had been "overwhelming." The members could vote by mail or in special meeting in Houston on January 11. Most voted by mail, said Ballard. "It's a new day in electronic payments," said David W. Nelms, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Discover Financial Services. "We believe that the combination of PULSE's experience in debit and Discover's signature capabilities will enable us to offer additional choices in the important and growing debit market and offer a highly appealing alternative to serve financial institutions, merchants and consumers." "The approval of this agreement by PULSE's members demonstrates that financial institutions recognize the strong benefits of combining the PULSE and Discover networks to establish a new choice for electronic payment products and services," said Stan Paur, PULSE CEO. "Our combined entity will be able to provide financial institutions of every size and type with a full-service debit platform and a comprehensive set of products, including credit, signature debit, PIN debit, gift card, stored value card and ATM services." PULSE and Discover Financial Services are expected to offer new products later this year that utilize the strengths of both partners, including opening the door for credit unions who choose to do so offering Discover cards.