Palamon Completes the Take Private of Retail Decisions plc

LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Palamon Capital Partners, one of Europe’s leading mid market private equity firms, has completed its first “take private” with the acquisition of Retail Decisions plc (“ReD”), the payment card and fraud prevention group, for a total transaction value of around £200 million. The acquisition was implemented by way of a Court sanctioned scheme of arrangement which became effective on 18 December 2006.

“ReD is a leading specialist supplier to the payments industry worldwide. We look forward to working with Palamon. They understand our space. With Palamon’s assistance we intend to strengthen our standing internationally and accelerate our ambitious plans for organic and acquisitive growth.”

ReD is a payment card and pre-paid card issuer, a world leader in transactional card fraud prevention and payment processing. A specialist supplier to the payments industry, ReD has operations in Europe, the United States, Australia and South Africa with a blue-chip international client base on six continents, taken from the telecommunications, retail, travel, petroleum, banking and the broader e-commerce sectors. Customers include Wal-Mart, Tesco, Bloomingdales, Travelocity, T-Mobile, Texaco, Shell, Woolworths and Comet. The business has a strong management team led by Carl Clump, Chief Executive Officer, who will continue in this role. ReD operates in rapidly expanding markets having high barriers to entry and is solidly cash generative.

Fabio Giuseppetti, a Partner at Palamon Capital Partners commented:

“We were particularly attracted by the growth opportunities that this business presents given the wide application of its business services and Palamon’s ability to make the business more flexible in terms of accessing capital more quickly than a listed vehicle should acquisition opportunities arise.”

Palamon Capital Partners focuses on service-orientated businesses with high growth potential. Amongst its target business sectors, it has concentrated on the card and gift certificate sectors given the increased desire by consumers for value and choice which is forcing the providers of incentives to alter how they interact with their targeted recipients thereby creating significant investment opportunities. ReD is Palamon’s third recent investment in this sector, the others being Loyalty Partner GmbH, Germany’s most successful loyalty scheme and cadooz A.G., a leading marketing services company, focusing on gift certificates in Germany.

Matthew Turner, a Partner at Palamon Capital Partners commented:

“Palamon has taken an important step with its first public-to-private transaction of a UK listed business. The Firm supports the ReD management team’s strategy for building out the business and, where appropriate, will provide strategic advice and further cash resources to expand its operations and establish a presence in new territories, both organically and through acquisitions.”

Carl Clump, Chief Executive of ReD, commented:

“ReD is a leading specialist supplier to the payments industry worldwide. We look forward to working with Palamon. They understand our space. With Palamon’s assistance we intend to strengthen our standing internationally and accelerate our ambitious plans for organic and acquisitive growth.”

About Palamon Capital Partners

Palamon Capital Partners, LP is an independent private equity partnership founded in 1999, which is focused on providing equity for European growth services companies. Palamon, as a pan-European investor, originates, executes and manages investments in the UK, Germany, Italy, Spain, Denmark, Belgium, Sweden, and France. The Firm targets investments in companies where it can be the lead private equity provider and where the partnership’s experienced principals can provide strategic direction and support to help build equity value.

The Firm manages Palamon European Equity, L.P. and Palamon European Equity II, L.P., capitalised at €1.1 billion, and making up one of the largest pools of private equity capital dedicated to growth investment opportunities in Europe’s mid market. Investors in Palamon funds are based mainly in the US and Europe and are among the most significant investment institutions in the world.

To find out more about Palamon Capital Partners visit www.palamon.com

About Retail Decisions (ReD)

ReD has undergone a significant transformation since its formation in 2000 and its strategy since that time has been based on four key precepts: i) to focus on organic growth in its existing businesses, ii) to add new services to its portfolio, iii) to extend its international footprint, and iv) to take new services to new geographies. 2005 was a successful year in that progression, with increased revenues and profits complemented by two important acquisitions, Fuelserv and E Com, which provided ReD the platform to move forward over the coming years. As illustrated in its recently announced interim results for the six-month period ending 30 June 2006, ReD continues to deliver good growth.

To find out more about ReD visit www.redplc.com