Investment in CredoLab Pte Ltd

 

Embargoed until 7.00 a.m.

Thursday, 20th August 2020

 

 

GB GROUP PLC

("GBG", "Group" or the "Company")

 

Investment in CredoLab Pte. Ltd ("CredoLab")

 

GB Group (AIM: GBG), the identity data intelligence specialist, is leading the US$7.0 million first close of a Series A investment into CredoLab, a developer of bank-grade digital scorecards headquartered in Singapore.

 

In an all-share transaction, GBG will purchase a minority stake in CredoLab for a total consideration of US$3.0 million. This is in accordance with GBG's ongoing cash management strategy.

 

Established in 2016, CredoLab develops Artificial Intelligence driven bank grade digital scorecards for businesses that need to assess an applicant's risk profile and make better credit decisions. A closer collaboration with CredoLab will enhance GBG's digital on-boarding solution and allow the Company to reach new fintech and neobank market segments.

 

Consideration

In exchange for GBG's minority stake in CredoLab, GBG will issue to CredoLab 321,882 Ordinary Shares of 2.5 pence each in GBG (the "Consideration Shares").

 

Application has been made to the London Stock Exchange for the Consideration Shares to be admitted to trading on the AIM. It is expected that admission to the AIM will become effective and that dealings on the AIM will commence in the Consideration Shares on Friday, 21^st August 2020.

 

Total Voting Rights

In accordance with the provisions of the Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules of the Financial Conduct Authority, the Company confirms that, following the issue of the Consideration Shares, its issued share capital will comprise 195,024,387 Ordinary Shares.

 

There are no shares held in treasury.

 

The above figure may be used by shareholders as the denominator for the calculations by which they will determine if they are required to notify their interest in, or a change to their interest in the Company under the Disclosure and Transparency Rules.

 

Chris Clark, CEO, commented:

"GBG's fraud and compliance solution allows financial institutions to onboard and transact with their customers quickly, safely, and securely. We have experienced first-hand CredoLab's capabilities from our ongoing commercial partnership. The company's AI-based proprietary technology will not only complement our existing offering but also provide critical behavioural risk reference data from good customers who are financially excluded."

 

Peter Barcak, CEO and Co-Founder of CredoLab, said:

"Banks and lenders always grapple with finding data that allows them to assess customers' affordability and overall creditworthiness. While GBG's fraud solution flags suspicious loan and credit card applicants during the onboarding journey, CredoLab's behavioural risk score and algorithm lowers false positives and false negatives on delinquent behaviours to discern the probability of a customer to repay. CredoLab will use the funds to consolidate its leadership in Southeast Asia and expand its presence in key markets across Asia, Latin America, Europe, and Africa."

 

For further information, please contact:

 

GB Group plc Chris Clark, Chief Executive Dave Wilson, Group Finance and Operations Director	+44 (0)1244 657333
Peel Hunt LLP (Nominated Adviser and Broker) Edward Knight Nick Prowting Ed Allsopp	+44 (0)20 7418 8900
Tulchan Communications (Public Relations) Matt Low Deborah Rooney	+44 (0)20 7353 4200
Website	www.gbgplc.com

 

About GBG

 

GBG offers a range of solutions that help organisations quickly validate and verify the identity and location of their customers.

 

Our market-leading technology, data and expertise help our customers improve digital access, deliver a seamless experience and establish trust so that they can transact quickly, safely and securely with their customers online. 

 

Headquartered in the UK and with over 1,000 team members across 16 countries, we work with 20,000 customers in over 70 countries. Some of the world's best-known businesses rely on GBG to provide digital services and keep the economy moving, from US e-commerce giants to Asia's biggest banks and European household brands.  

 

To find out more about how we help our customers establish trust with their customers, visit www.gbgplc.com and follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter @gbgplc.

 

About CredoLab

 

Established in Singapore in 2016, CredoLab develops bank grade digital scorecards for banks, lenders, e-commerce, travel, ride-hailing, e-wallets, insurance, retail companies and any business that needs to make better credit decisions. CredoLab uses only privacy-consented and permissioned smartphone and web behavioural data to help its clients expand market share while keeping the cost of risk under control.

 

Its AI-based algorithm processes 3.8 million features to find predictive micro-behavioural patterns before converting them into risk scores. These scores enable any lender to assess the creditworthiness of their applicants even in the absence of credit bureau data. To date, CredoLab has enabled the issuance of US$2.0 billion in loans across 20 countries and has maintained its predictive power even in the presence of payment holidays.