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First, I do believe that out-of-pocket spending will in- main competitive. POS companies today have evolved
crease in some areas, such as buying a new car, appli- over the last few years, where they no longer allow us
ances, clothing, electronics and any items manufac- to include our processing with their systems. We have
tured outside the United States. Customers will be pay- been searching for the right company to work with that
ing more for any imported item, but the basket of items is known and understands we can bring a lot of busi-
purchased each week will decrease. ness if they stay away from the processing.

If you are on a fixed budget, like most Americans, the Allen Kopelman
number of units purchased will decrease. I believe the Nationwide Payment Systems Inc.
costs of goods and services again will dramatically go
up, taking money out of the pockets of Americans, es- 1. What do you expect the economy's trajectory will
pecially those on fixed incomes who can least afford to look like in the coming year, and why? And what eco-
have less buying power. nomic markers will you focus on, among the many
data points and opinions available, to guide your
Tariffs on goods imported from Mexico, Canada and business decisions going forward?
China do not help us as the driving force of the econ-
omy, They simply add to our costs. Potentially cutting We will have to see what 2025 brings: lower loan rates,
programs, such as Social Security, Medicare, Health gas prices and credit card interest rates. Gas/oil drives
benefits, doesn't help middle or lower status Ameri- the economy of the USA and the world—no matter what
cans. Tax cuts for the very wealthy don't help you or anyone says. When money is tight and prices are high,
me, but a select tiny proportion of Americans. The con- the first things people pay for are housing, utilities and
cept of Trickle Down economics has been proven over food. After that, they are watching every penny. If gas
and over not to work. So, I am afraid, our country will goes down, prices will go down, but that takes time.
get into further debt, and more folks will have to live
with enjoying less. The other thing to look at is that in 2025, many real es-
tate loans are going to come due, and if interest rates re-
2. What specific plans do you have for your business main high, we will see many commercial foreclosures.
in 2025? Will you be branching into new ventures,
staying the course or some combination of the two? One thing driving retailers and restaurants out of busi-
ness right now, even forcing offices to close and peo-
Our company's business will continue, and we do hope ple to work at home is property taxes. We see it here
to continue to grow, but I do see more businesses hav- in Florida—a shopping center sells, the new owner has
ing trouble paying the bills and going out of business, higher property taxes than the previous owner, and the
so our expectations are to have higher attrition. As a rents skyrocket. Then the businesses can't sustain that
medium sized ISO in the industry, we have a strong and stay open, and they close or move.
financial foundation and great people working for us. I
feel there is always a place for us based on our level of Local governments need to look at how to deal with
service, low costs and relationship building. that so that they are not running businesses out of
town. Same with apartment complexes. If rents go up,
We have continued to look in multiple directions for workers have to move, and they will look for work clos-
services we can offer that are profitable. We have re- er to home. A big problem in the USA right now is how
viewed some old basics, to see if there are profits to be to balance that out. Businesses owning their buildings
had, where we offer another company's product, with- have a great chance to survive and keep costs down.
out us having to support the business. We are also look-
ing at changing our structure and trying to have more 2. What specific plans do you have for your business
in-house sales reps in order to generate more profitable in 2025? Will you branch into new ventures, staying
accounts. the course or combining the two?

We have tried multiple companies for lead generation, The cheese always moves; we have a great plan in place
but have not found one in the industry that does what that we have executed to sell more non-agnostic solu-
they say they are going to do. So supporting our agents tions to businesses. Partner with software companies
or direct sales folks with leads is a priority for us this so that they can bring in more customers and make
coming year money off those relationships.

3. What about the landscape for small businesses, as I hope that Senator Durbin will not be successful with
well as for small versus large ISOs as we move into the CCRA in 2024 or 2025. He is a major pain. Why he
2025? How can they meet their distinct challenges and does not question Stripe, Square, Shopify and other
prosper? companies who use those services about their fees is
crazy.
The disadvantage an ISO has today is in marketing
spending and developing our own POS system to re-
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