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PRESS RELEASE
MEI Conlux of Mars, Incorporated is Purchased by Bain Capital and Advantage Partners!
05 April, 2006 - TOKYO JAPAN -
Bain Capital, a leading global private investment firm, and Advantage Partners, one of the foremost private equity firms in Japan, today announced they have entered into an agreement to acquire unattended payment systems provider MEI Conlux from Mars, Incorporated. MEI Conlux is the global leader in payment acceptance systems used widely in vending, gaming, transport and retail applications.
The transaction is subject to normal regulatory approvals. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Headquartered in West Chester, Pennsylvania and Sakado, Japan , MEI Conlux has the world's largest installed base of unattended payment systems, handling over 1 billion cash transactions every week. In 2003, Mars purchased Conlux, the leading Japanese payment provider, and combined it with MEI to create the leading global business in unattended payment systems.
"We enjoy strong industry relationships, a heritage of technology innovation and the number one or number two position in all of our business segments," said Mike Hayes, who will continue as President of MEI Conlux. "This positions us for significant growth and gives us the opportunity to invest more aggressively in new segments and geographies. The management team looks forward to working with Bain Capital and Advantage Partners to expand our business and introduce new technologies to improve service to our customers and consumers."
"MEI Conlux has a strong competitive position and superior technology which we believe will yield excellent growth in retail and gaming, as well as the core vending and transport businesses," said David Gross-Loh, a Managing Director at Bain Capital in Tokyo. "Bain Capital and Advantage Partners teamed up to leverage deep industry expertise and local market knowledge in Japan, the U.S. and Europe to quickly assess the prospects for the business."
Bain Capital recently established offices in Tokyo, Shanghai and Hong Kong to pursue investment opportunities in Japan and China. The firm has a strong track record of purchasing non-core divisions of large, multinational companies and partnering with the management team and employees to build significant value.
"The company has built strong leadership positions by investing in research and development to create technology that offers customers real benefits including lower total cost of ownership," stated Richard Folsom, Representative Partner at Advantage Partners, which is based in Tokyo. "We believe MEI Conlux has significant growth potential in the key segments where it currently competes, as well as in certain new segments. We look forward to supporting management in executing the growth strategy globally." Advantage Partners, which established the first buy-out fund in Japan in 1997, brings significant operations and management expertise to its investments.
Financing for the transaction will be provided by Citigroup Japan and Nikko Citigroup. Mars Incorporated was advised by Goldman Sachs.
About Mars, Incorporated
A privately-held company, Mars, Incorporated (www.mars.com) produces some of the world's leading confectionery, food, pet food and beverage brands, and operates in more than 65 countries. Headquartered in McLean, Virginia, Mars, Incorporated employs more than 39,000 associates worldwide with 100 manufacturing facilities globally. The company owns some of the world's favorite brands including M&M'S® Brand, SNICKERS® Brand, UNCLE BEN'S® Brand, PEDIGREE® Brand Food For Dogs, WHISKAS® Brand Food For Cats. The company's global sales exceed $18 billion annually.
About MEI Conlux MEI Conlux (www.meiglobal.com) is a leading global manufacturer of unattended payments systems and employs over 750 associates worldwide with manufacturing facilities in Japan, Mexico and Switzerland. The business operates distribution hubs in the United States and United Kingdom that are also equipped to perform final product configuration for customized orders. The distribution network reaches more than 90 countries around the world.
About Bain Capital Bain Capital, LLC (www.baincapital.com) is a global private investment firm that manages several pools of capital including private equity, venture capital, public equity and leveraged debt assets with more than $35 billion in assets under management. Since its inception in 1984, Bain Capital has made private equity investments and add-on acquisitions in over 230 companies in a variety of industries around the world, and has a team of almost 200 professionals dedicated to investing in and supporting its portfolio companies. Bain Capital has a long history of successful investments in retail and technology businesses, including such companies as Toys "R" Us, Burger King, AMC Theatres, Domino's Pizza, SunGard Data Systems, and UGS PLM Solutions. Headquartered in Boston, Bain Capital has offices in Tokyo, Hong Kong, Shanghai, New York, London and Munich.
About Advantage Partners Advantage Partners, LLP. (www.advantagegroup.co.jp) is a private equity investment firm founded in 1992. The firm manages about $1 billion in private equity funds that focus on investing in acquisitions, buy-outs, buy-ins and other private equity opportunities in Japan. Advantage established the first buy-out fund in Japan in 1997 and is a pioneer in the private equity investment industry in Japan. The objective of the funds is to realize superior capital gains for investors. In order to achieve this, Advantage Partners places great importance on supporting operational improvement and strategic planning, based upon extensive business consulting experience. Advantage Partners has invested in 19 companies to date.
