Miami, FL – (January 9, 2013) – Amscot Financial, a leading provider of convenient, consumer-oriented financial services, launched a major expansion in South Florida with plans to open more than 50 branches in Miami-Dade and Broward counties over the next two years. The expansion will result in a capital investment of more than $20 million in South Florida and the creation of more than 500 new jobs in the communities in which it operates. Amscot will celebrate its South Florida expansion with the opening of a new corporate training center in Hialeah at 885 W. 49th Street on Jan. 12, 2013 from noon to 2 p.m.
Founded in Tampa in 1989, Amscot Financial currently has a significant retail presence in the Interstate 4 corridor with branches in 16 Florida counties in the Tampa Bay and metro Orlando media markets. Florida is Amscot’s home and is the only state in which Amscot operates.
Amscot offers consumers a spectrum of financial services: check cashing; money orders sold with no purchase fees or other conditions; Western Union money transfers; the ability to pay bills to more than 200 billers; cash advances; notary services and postage sold at no extra fee. Amscot operates ATMs in every branch and also offers the Amscot Prepaid MasterCard®, a pre-paid debit card that can be used at any location that accepts MasterCard. In 2012, Amscot saw an average of more than 2 million customers a month and conducted financial transactions totaling more than $6 billion.
All Amscot branches operate 365 days a year and are open from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. six days a week. On Sundays, branches are typically open from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. In Central Florida, one-third of Amscot’s branches are open 24 hours a day. In South Florida, the company will announce the locations of 24-hour branches in early 2013.
Ian MacKechnie, founder and CEO of Amscot Financial, said the company’s core mission is to provide consumers with access to financial services at times and locations convenient to their busy lives.
“We know that for many of our customers, their lives don’t revolve around a typical 8-to-5 schedule. When they need to get a check cashed or to pay a bill, they want to do it when they have time and they want to do it quickly,” MacKechnie said. “That has been central to our success over the past 23 years and it has worked very well.”
MacKechnie added: “Expanding to South Florida has been on our radar screen for many years and we are excited about the opportunity to bring the Amscot brand to Miami-Dade and Broward counties.”
Amscot Financial is committed to responsible corporate citizenship and has a “Kids First” community contributions policy. Every August, the company conducts its annual Just-a-Dollar campaign. Customers are invited to contribute $1 as part of their to their local education foundation; Amscot collects and tracks donations and adds a corporate match of $10,000. In 2012, Amscot and its customers combined to raise a total of more than $171,000, which was distributed to local education foundations through the Florida Consortium of Education Foundations. Over seven years, the Just-a-Dollar campaign has raised more than $718,000 for education foundations.
In South Florida, Amscot recently partnered with the Kiwanis of Little Havana sponsor the group’s Annual Christmas Fair. The annual holiday event provides toys for thousands of underprivileged children in Miami-Dade County.
“Because we call Florida home, we believe it is important to be involved in the lives of our communities,” MacKechnie said. “We look forward to all the opportunities that South Florida has to offer.”
About Amscot Financial
Headquartered in Tampa, Fla., Amscot Financial is a leading provider of convenient, consumer-oriented financial services, including check cashing, bill payment, money transfers, cash advances and money orders through its business division, Amscot International Money Order Company. Amscot also offers the Amscot Prepaid MasterCard®, a pre-paid debit card that enables owners to make purchases from any location that accepts MasterCard. Amscot Financial currently operates more than 200 retail financial service centers throughout Florida and employs more than 2,000 employees. Amscot Financial has been recognized by the Tampa Bay Business Journal as one of Tampa Bay’s Best Places to Work for five years. For additional information, please visit the company’s website at www.amscot.com.
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