Discover Financial Services has opened a new subsidiary, Discover Information Technology (Shanghai) Ltd., to support Discover’s data analysis and modeling operations. The new operation will house a staff of 45 analysts. Discover plans to double that workforce by 2009.

The opening of the technology center is Discover’s latest foothold in China, where the company already has a long-term agreement with China Unionpay. In May 2007, Discover opened the Discover Financial Services Representative Office in Shanghai to support the Unionpay alliance, which gives Discover Network cardholders access to China Unionpay’s merchant locations and ATMs across Mainland China. It also allows China Unionpay cardholders access to ATMs, and POS terminals at retail locations across the U.S. on Discover’s PULSE network.