IRVINE, Calif., April 5, 2000 (PRIMEZONE) -- Large and small companies alike are focusing on modeling ideaLab!'s Success as an Incubator. IdeaLabs!, which recently raised $1 Billion in private financing possibly in preparation of an IPO, has backed seven public companies that have a total market capitalization of greater than $10 billion.
INFe.com (OTCBB:INFE), a new Internet incubator and technology infrastructure company announced that it will close within the next fifteen days on two major acquisitions that will add $25 million in annualized revenues.
Wall Street Veterans at Financial Performance (OTCBB:FPCX) and Wit Soundview (Nasdaq:WITC) are aggressively pursuing new ventures which develop early stage companies. Financial Performance Corporation, which has applied to trade on Nasdaq recently, named Ron Nash and Jeffrey Silverman as new management and has announced its new business strategy to focus on incubating emerging companies.
Jeffrey S. Silverman is the co-founder and Chairman of the investment firm LTS Capital Partners LLC. During Mr. Silverman's tenure as Chief Executive Officer at PLY GEM, the company acquired 14 companies and annual revenues reached over $700 million. Mr. Silverman serves on the Boards of Directors of Triarc Companies Inc. and Boyar Value Fund, Inc. Mr. Nash founded, and from 1982 to 1998 was President of, Nash Weiss & Co., a brokerage firm specializing in market making for Nasdaq companies, which was sold to Quick & Reilly in 1998. Mr. Nash is also one of the founding partners and a board member of Steinberg & Lyman Investment Bankers, where he was responsible for venture capital, strategic planning, mergers and IPO's within the health care field.
Wit SoundView(SM), the online investment banking group of Wit Capital Group, Inc. announced Thursday that it has signed a letter of intent for a joint venture with Alley Capital Partners LLC, a financial advisory firm that will offer financing and consultancy services, as well as direct investments, to seed and early stage Internet companies.
Alley Capital Partners was created to improve the efficiency of early-stage capital raising and to help open up access to investment opportunities to a wider range of suitable investors. The company is led by Victor Cohn, Chairman, and John Kiernan, CEO, who were most recently employed as investment bankers at Bear, Stearns. Mr. Cohn has spent 30 years on Wall Street raising capital for more than 1,500 corporations, and headed the capital markets departments at Salomon Brothers, United Bank of Switzerland and Bear, Stearns. He was co-head of investment banking at UBS. Mr. Kiernan has worked with more than 50 Internet companies at Bear, Stearns since 1995 and has significant experience as a senior banker on high-profile initial public offerings.
About idealab!
idealab!'s mission is to identify, create and operate category-leading Internet businesses. Founded in March 1996 by Bill Gross, idealab! generates ideas for new Internet businesses and creates, capitalizes and operates individual companies focused to pursue these ideas. Actively participating in the on-going operations of its network companies through board representation, information sharing and facilitating collaboration among the companies, idealab! provides each operating company with a full range of operational support services, including business strategy, marketing, recruiting, consulting and services relating to development, technology and network infrastructure, as well as office space. idealab! public companies include eToys, GoTo.com , CitySearch, NetZero, and Tickets.com .
About INFe.com
INFe.com, Inc. is an Internet infrastructure organization providing Internet and e-commerce companies their most needed resources. The Company comprises three wholly-owned subsidiaries: INFe-Ventures, Inc., the financial and business consulting services division of the Company; INFe-Technologies, Inc., which performs technology due diligence, technology consulting, i.e., software development, software projects, software consulting, and serves as a technology outsourcing resource; and INFe-Human Resources, Inc., a provider of staffing and human resource management services for its client base.
About Financial Performance
Financial Performance Corporation is a holding company that operates through its subsidiaries. Financial Performance is implementing a new business strategy in which it will focus on Internet-related businesses and services aimed at the business-to-business market in addition to its merger communications and consulting business in the financial services industry. FPCX plans to serve as an incubator, providing worthy emerging companies with venture capital and management expertise. According to FCPX, the recent acquisition of iMapData.com (www.imapdata.com) represents the first of several equity transactions that FPC is hoping to conclude in coming months in the Internet business-to-business market.
Subsidiaries
iMapData.com, Inc.
Under the new leadership of newly named Chairman Messrs. Silverman and President Nash FPCX is focusing on acquisitions or business combinations within or outside the financial services industry that they believe are strategic and will provide growth opportunities for the Company.
Through our recently acquired subsidiary, iMapData.com, Inc. we provide business-to-business clients with convenient access via digital computer software to competitive marketing and economic data on a secure proprietary website. iMapData.com employs a vast array of information to produce its analyses, mining and merging the data to create proprietary information using software that allows users to digitally visualize data based on algorithms that it has developed over many years. iMapData.com's customized databases cover 1,005 industries; enable clients to view submarkets unique to their industry; display the competitors, customers and suppliers in a given industry; and overlay and correlate all this information in simple and meaningful ways -- all in real time.
Michaelson Kelbick Partners, Inc. ("MKP")
MKP provides communications consulting services to the financial services industry, particularly with respect to communications concerning mergers and other business combinations. Bank merger communications accounts for approximately 85% of MKP's revenues. MKP also provides marketing, planning and communications strategies, sales promotion and direct mail services.
In October 1994, Susan Michaelson and Hillary Kelbick, formed MKP. Ms. Michaelson and Ms. Kelbick have over 34 years of combined experience in financial services marketing. They have managed over 50 merger communications and other projects for banks. They were both formerly employed as Senior Vice Presidents by Wilcox Associates in New York City where they were primarily responsible for the planning, development and execution of marketing communications projects for numerous financial institutions. MKP's first two major merger assignments were the First Union/First Fidelity merger and the Bank of Boston/Bay Bank merger. MKP was the sole merger communications firm involved in these mergers. Since its formation, MKP has also performed services for various other banking institutions, including First Union Corporation, Chase Manhattan Bank, BankBoston, The Dime Savings Bank of New York, Fleet Financial Group, The CIT Group, and PNC Bank.
MKP has also been involved with the First Union/Signet Bank merger and received a "Future Bank Initiative" assignment from First Union National Bank. This assignment was awarded to MKP by First Union National Bank based upon MKP's expertise in the banking industry and involved designing and implementing communications with the bank's customers which describe the bank's products and services.
In 1997, MKP received the Vendor of the Year Award from First Union National Bank, which is presented to the vendor that has had a major positive impact on First Union National Bank for the year in question. Only one such award was presented by First Union National Bank in 1997. The merger communications projects which MKP undertakes involve planning, strategizing, managing and executing customer communications in support of merger related events.
About Wit SoundView(SM)
Wit SoundView(SM) was created in early 2000 when Wit Capital Group, Inc. joined with SoundView Technology Group, Inc., which has changed its name to Wit SoundView Corporation. Wit SoundView(SM) is the largest online investment banking group focused exclusively on the Internet and technology sectors. Wit SoundView(SM) offers a strong complement of investment banking services, from Internet-strategic advisory, venture capital and private equity placements, to public offerings and M&A advisory. With one of the largest research teams in the sector, Wit SoundView(SM) produces comprehensive sell-side research on over 235 Internet and technology companies, developed for our online and institutional audiences.
Wit SoundView(SM) is recognized as the first firm to bring online individual investors directly into the capital formation process in a meaningful way and continues to leverage the Internet to revolutionize the way in which issuers and investors communicate. For more information, please see www.witsoundview.com.
About Alley Capital Partners
Alley Capital Partners will bring together two complementary yet fragmented sectors of the local Internet industry: new entrepreneurs and angel investors. Focusing on early stage companies with demonstrable business models, Alley Capital Partners will help develop the businesses of its clients to position the companies as attractive investment opportunities for angel investors. Once external funding is required, Alley Capital Partners will introduce its client companies to a network of angel investors and select venture capital firms, and assist its clients in communicating with the investing community. Wit SoundView or its managed funds will be provided an opportunity to invest in each of the client companies. Alley Capital Partners also intends to make direct investments in client companies to help them finance their start-up expenses.
About IBC
IBC (www.ibchannel.com) is the premier business and finance portal providing investors with a one stop destination for business and financial information including free news, quotes, charts, commentary from top analysts and online corporate profiles and research. Interactive Business Channel Inc. develops and invests in new technology companies and new technology incubators. The strategy is to integrate companies into a collaborative network that leverages its knowledge and resources. Our network of relationships include Financial Performance Corp., Presidents Telecom Inc., InfoCall Communications, Medcom USA, Usurf America, Xpedian Inc., ComTech Consolidation Grp , Voyager Internet Group.com, Commerce Group Corp., and Collegelink.com Inc. IBC may have equity positions in the companies mentioned herein please visit www.ibchannel.com/disclaimer .