Saylent Technologies, Inc. Announces Closing of Series A Funding Led by the Venture Capital Fund of New England and SEED Venture Finance
FRANKLIN, MA - May 22, 2007 - Saylent Technologies, Inc., a leading provider of debit card portfolio management solutions, today announced the closing of a Series A funding round. The financing was led by the Venture Capital Fund of New England (VCFNE) and includes SEED Venture Finance as well as private investors.
Saylent's solutions address the growing debit and prepaid card market by offering decision tools to card issuers that improve usage, profitability and cardholder satisfaction. Its portfolio management suite, Y-DebitTM, builds a dynamic infrastructure utilizing data from a financial institution's existing providers to track, analyze and measure cardholder usage and profitability. The solution also builds an in-house infrastructure for debit rewards management.
"We are pleased to lead Saylent's financing round," said Carl Novotny, Managing Director at VCFNE and Saylent board member. "The explosive growth in the debit market is led by consumers' payment preference and the corresponding revenue model for financial institutions. This growth, however, causes a number of management concerns. Saylent is uniquely positioned to help card issuers, specifically financial institutions, maximize their card program. Debit cards are a core relationship touchpoint. Improving its effectiveness drives loyalty and revenue, and Saylent's solutions lead the market."
Tyson Nargassans, President of Saylent Technologies, agreed. "We are thrilled to complete this phase of our corporate growth. I appreciate the support of the Venture Capital Fund of New England, SEED Venture Finance and our private investors. This funding enables us to focus on delivering market leading solutions that improve cardholder satisfaction and non-interest income. Y-Debit's customer trending, usage analytics and financial tracking mechanisms will provide business managers with the decision-making information necessary in this ever-evolving market."
The investors in SEED Venture Finance's current fund include local and national financial institutions. "Our investors are their potential customers," said Thomas Wooters, Investment Manager at SEED Venture Finance and Saylent board member. "We believe that our investment will help Saylent and their financial institution customers capitalize on the large opportunity represented by the debit and pre-paid card market."
About Venture Capital Fund of New England
The Venture Capital Fund of New England (VCFNE) is based in Wellesley, Massachusetts, and focuses its investments on early stage businesses. VCFNE has been investing in New England-based companies since 1982 in a series of funds. The company's latest fund, VCFNE IV, started in 2001 with a $75 million fund size, emphasizes marketing and business services and innovative technology-based companies in its portfolio. Carl Novotny is a founder of VCFNE IV and one of the firm's Managing Directors. He can be reached at cnovotny@vcfne.com.
About SEED Venture Finance
SEED Venture Finance, LLC is a private investment firm specializing in making subordinated debt, senior debt and equity investments in small and medium sized businesses. SEED Venture Finance manages SEED Ventures L.P., a $20 million Small Business Investment Company ("SBIC") focused on investments in Southeastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island. SEED Venture Finance has established strategic partnerships with major commercial banks in the region and is uniquely positioned to provide a company with a full range of capital raising options and related services. For more information about SEED Venture Finance see www.seedventurefinance.com.
About Saylent Technologies, Inc.
Saylent Technologies, based in Franklin, Mass., helps drive card usage and increase non-interest income for financial institutions and other card issuers. Employing innovative analytics and segmentation techniques, Saylent's Y-Debit solution suite identifies card usage patterns by cardholder, targets underperforming or at-risk segments, and enables corresponding marketing programs and metrics to shift behavior and increase share of wallet. For more information, please visit www.saylent.com or call (508) 570-2161.