The Columbus-based company announced this week that its current CEO, "Jim" Blanchard would be retiring in 2006, ending speculation on the matter. Pending board approval, Richard Anthony, the company's current president and COO, would take the CEO spot, while relinquishing the president's title. TPAtlanta will keep you posted on the succession chain and their implications for Synovus and the industry as they develop.

No, there's no office furniture or data for sale online at eBay (at least not from a Georgia TP company). But there is a local TP connection to the world's largest online auction company. Atlanta-based Equifax, Inc. is partnering with eBay to increase consumer fraud protections and credit management through their Web portal. The relationship will allow people in eBay's online community to access a range of Equifax services, including: Score Power and the 3-in-1 Credit Report. Participants can also purchase access to Equifax Credit Watch for eBay, which is an online tool alerting customers of changes to their Equifax Credit Report. Consumers can also purchase a "3-in-1 Credit Report, eBay Special," which provides a "three for the price of two" special to those customers that purchase the 3-in-1 Credit Reports with Score.

The Golden Nugget Hotel and Casino, Monte Carlo Hotel and Casino, and the Tropicana Hotel and Casino all recently signed deals with local TP company, Global Payments, Inc. for use of their VIP LightSpeed service. The company announced earlier this spring that the Vegas strip's newest and grandest casino and luxury resort, Wynn Las Vegas, would also use the service. VIP LightSpeed, which is a PC-based platform with Internet accessibility, provides these resorts with a range of services, including: traditional and electronic check cashing; credit and debit card cash advances; player history and credit reports; ATM cash availability; and management reporting tools that cut down on transaction processing time, while reducing the risks of check cashing and cash advance services.

Pete Kight, CheckFree Corporation Chairman and CEO, received the award from the Atlanta chapter of the Association for Corporate Growth (ACG) at a dinner on May 26th. According to the ACG, the award goes to "an Atlanta business leader who has set a new standard for corporate management in terms of corporate vision, endurance and growth..." Kight follows other leaders like Charles Brewer, Chairman and CEO of Mindspring Enterprises; Thomas E. Noonan, Chairman, President and CEO of Internet Security Systems, Inc.; and Atlanta executive Arthur Blank, Owner and CEO of The Atlanta Falcons.