Clear2Pay Closes a Third Round of Financing of EUR 6,1 million

10/27/04 - PRNewswire

Clear2Pay Closes a Third Round of Financing of EUR 6,1 million PRNewswire BRUSSELS, Belgium October 26

BRUSSELS, Belgium, October 26 /PRNewswire/ --

- Quest for Growth joins current investors and invests EUR 2 million

On October 26, 2004 QUEST FOR GROWTH announced the investment of EUR 2,000,000 in Clear2Pay NV/SA, a software vendor specialising in next generation payment solutions for financial institutions. Other investors in this round, which closed at EUR 6,1 million are current investors Technology Venture Partners (Australia); Koceram (Belgium) and Clear2Pay's management.

Jurgen Ingels, co-founder and CFO comments: "We are very pleased that a significant investment partner like Quest for Growth has chosen to invest in a private company like Clear2Pay. The closing of this third investment round will enable us to effectuate our growth strategy. Our previous acquisitions have not only allowed us to increase our international presence, but the subsequent integration also enabled us to accelerate the roll-out of our product strategy. At the annual SWIFT conference Sibos, we recently launched two examples of this: PayPark Bank Payment Hub and the upgraded Corporate2Bank solution in reply to current customer demand for more flexible and transparent payment solutions."

René Avonts, Managing Director of Quest Management: "After yesterday's announcement of our investment in ProStrakan, this is Quest for Growth's second investment in an unquoted company since the start of this fiscal year. It brings our investment level in unquoted companies and venture funds to 25% of Quest for Growth's assets. We are very happy that our first investment in a private technology company since 2001 is with a high quality Belgian player."

By joining in this capital increase, Technology Venture Partners confirms its initial statement at the time of the Sienna acquisition, that it saw Clear2Pay as 'an investment rather than an exit strategy.' To this end Dr Phillip Wing, General Partner, Technology Venture Partners states: "We have clear evidence in the Asia Pacific region that the Clear2Pay integration of Sienna Technologies has created significant value for customers, shareholders and staff. Therefore we are delighted to continue to back the outstanding management team at Clear2Pay."

About Clear2Pay

Clear2Pay is an innovative e-finance company focused on delivering globally applicable solutions for secure, timely electronic payments. Headquartered in Brussels, Belgium, the company's focus is to facilitate banks and financial organizations in their provision of electronic payments services. Clients include global and major regional financial institutions such as ING, SEB Kort, LuottoKunta, VISA Europe, MasterCard, ANZ, National Australia Bank, ABN AMRO, Commonwealth Bank and Reserve Bank of Australia. Clear2Pay operates out of Belgium, the Netherlands, Spain, United Kingdom, Australia and Singapore and currently employs over 120 staff. More information is available on www.clear2pay.com.

About QUEST FOR GROWTH

The Privak "QUEST FOR GROWTH" is a Pan-European investment company that invests in European technology-based growth companies in a broad range of industrial sectors such as information technology, semiconductors, telecommunications, software, electronics, biotechnology, medical devices, health-care and new materials. QUEST FOR GROWTH invests in quoted and unquoted companies. QUEST FOR GROWTH is Belgium's first Privak and is an investment company traded on the continuous market of Euronext Brussels. The Belgian Government created the legal and fiscal framework for the Privak as a tax transparent investment vehicle specially tailored to the needs of private equity. The Privak "QUEST FOR GROWTH" is managed by Quest Management NV. More information is available on www.questforgrowth.com.

About Technology Venture Partners (TVP)

TVP is the largest specialist technology venture capital firm in Australia. Its team has collectively over 100 years experience in the IT&C sector and has been investing in Australian IT&C companies since 1993. The TVP team has a unique mix of investment, business management and entrepreneurial skills gained from global experience in the US, Europe, Asia and Australia. TVP manages over A$200 million in funds, including TVP#3; the largest IT&C fund raised in Australia ($144 million). www.tvp.com.au.