BXS BancorpSouth Bank

Convenient, Secure Application Now Available to Cellular South Customers JACKSON, Miss., May 5 /PRNewswire/ -- Cellular South and BancorpSouth, Inc. (NYSE:BXS), two Mississippi-based companies who are leaders in the wireless phone and banking services industries, unveiled a mobile banking application today that brings the convenience, flexibility and security of online banking to the wireless phone. The free wireless application is being offered in collaboration with mobile payments provider Firethorn Holdings, LLC, a Qualcomm company, and allows Cellular South customers to view account balances and history, transfer funds and pay bills from their mobile handsets through a secure, PIN-protected gateway. "Mobile banking is a convenient and secure method of managing money through your wireless handset," said Cellular South President Hu Meena. "Whether you're a college student or a busy business traveler, our mobile banking application gives you the flexibility to pay bills or transfer funds when you need to make financial decisions on the go." An estimated 46 million households currently bank online according to Celent, a Boston-based research and consulting firm focused on the application of information technology in the global financial services industry. Additionally, a new Harris Interactive study of 1,072 U.S. adults shows that the demand for mobile banking services among wireless customers is continuing to grow, with 16 percent already using the services and another 35 percent open to checking bank account balances and transferring funds via their mobile phones, smart phones or personal digital assistants. Mobile banking users will need to have an account with a participating bank, such as BancorpSouth, along with online access to their account, which is free at most banks. After signing in, users can initiate the mobile banking process through a "mobile banking" link at the top of the online banking sign in page. The link will take them to a form requesting information including the wireless provider, phone model and phone type. Users can access and monitor multiple bank accounts from the same application and PIN. The site will provide a secure initialization code once an applicant submits the finished form. To activate mobile banking, users must enter the code into the mobile banking section of their handsets and set up their secure PIN. Processing takes just a few seconds. "We value our partnership with Cellular South and are excited to offer the option of mobile banking to Cellular South customers," said Aubrey Patterson, BancorpSouth's chairman and chief executive officer. "Managing bank accounts from a wireless device is the next step in the future of banking, and it will make banking more convenient for BancorpSouth and Cellular South customers." Cellular South will provide mobile banking through Firethorn, which offers a secure application with a simple and easy to use interface. Firethorn also allows users to access their accounts at different banks from a single PIN, making the process more convenient. "Mobile banking is the first step in introducing mobile commerce to customers," said Tripp Rackley, Firethorn's chief executive officer. "Firethorn is collaborating with these two wireless and banking industry innovators to provide consumers the convenience of mobile banking, which will expand the market and further drive adoption." Cellular South has been a leader in wireless communications for 20 years. Offering exceptional service and a suite of m-commerce applications to customers across the Southeast, Cellular South continues to make the wireless lifestyle easily accessible. Mobile banking will provide yet another innovative m-commerce solution for Cellular South customers. About Cellular South Cellular South is a privately-owned diversified mobile communications company passionately committed to helping customers get the most out of their wireless devices and services. The company accomplishes this goal by providing the most reliable and advanced nationwide wireless voice and data network, offering a full range of industry-leading unlimited flat rate plans, and through the world's first integrated, interactive online and in-store experience that gives customers easy, simple and convenient solutions to all of their wireless lifestyle needs. For more information, visit http://www.cellularsouth.com/. About BancorpSouth Headquartered in Tupelo, Mississippi, BancorpSouth Inc. is a $13.2 billion financial holding company that operates 290 commercial banking, mortgage, insurance, trust and broker/dealer locations in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Tennessee and Texas with a staff of approximately 4,500 full-time employees. BancorpSouth and its subsidiaries provide, in addition to traditional banking services, mortgage origination and servicing, student loans, leasing, credit card, trust and fiduciary services, brokerage, investment and insurance services. For more information, visit http://www.bancorpsouthonline.com/. About Firethorn Atlanta-based Firethorn is a mobile banking and payment services enabler that links financial institutions and wireless carriers through a unified, secure and scalable technology platform that seamlessly extends full-service banking and payment capabilities to consumers from any financial institution to virtually any wireless device. By collaborating with Firethorn, financial institutions and wireless carriers gain a competitive service differentiator that improves customer retention, generates revenue and answers customer demands for more product/service convenience. For more information, visit http://www.firethornmobile.com/. DATASOURCE: Cellular South CONTACT: Jim Richmond of Cellular South, +1-601-624-7504, ; or Randy Burchfield of BancorpSouth, +1-662-620-4302, ; or Kelly Harviel Buday of Firethorn Holdings, LLC, +1-678-507-2555, Web site: http://www.cellularsouth.com/ http://www.bancorpsouthonline.com/ http://www.firethornmobile.com/

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