Net1 steps up its engagement with Bank Frick

Technology group Net1 UEPS Technologies, Inc. (Net1) has acquired a further 5 per cent share in Bank Frick & Co. AG. Following this transaction, Net1 now holds 35 per cent of the capital stock in the Liechtenstein bank. Bank Frick is intensively involved in the field of blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies and is further stepping up its efforts in this dynamic field.

Balzers (LI) –Nasdaq-listed technology group Net1 acquired a further 5 per cent of the capital stock in Bank Frick from the majority shareholder, the Kuno Frick Family Foundation. As part of its strategic involvement, Net1 acquired 30 per cent of the shares in Bank Frick from the then sole owner, the Kuno Frick Family Foundation, back in September 2017.

Net1 therefore holds a total of 35 per cent of the share capital in the Liechtenstein bank. The majority shareholder of Bank Frick remains the Kuno Frick Family Foundation, with a share of 65 per cent.

The acquisition of the 5 per cent stake is independent of Net1’s option to purchase a further 35 per cent of the capital stock in Bank Frick.

Herman Kotzé: “Interesting blockchain opportunities”

“Our further share purchase from the Kuno Fick Family Foundation emphasises the importance of our involvement with Bank Frick and the multiple synergies between the two organizations. Bank Frick is progressive and has developed a range of exciting business models and products in the areas of payment, cryptocurrency trading and blockchain applications, and its pipeline of new products and services is growing. With blockchain, in particular, we see interesting opportunities to make attractive products available for people in countries with a low concentration of banks,” said Net1 CEO Herman Kotzé.

The purchase price for the 5 per cent stake from the Kuno Frick Family Foundation includes a surcharge. This premium will be reinvested in the bank in order to establish and accelerate the expansion of a dedicated team focused on the development and various applications of blockchain technology.

Partner bank for Initial Coin Offerings

Bank Frick supports and assists a large number of companies with their Initial Coin Offerings (ICO). Bank Frick also develops structured products for promoters in the field of cryptocurrencies.

Bank Frick was the first bank in the CHF area to offer a cryptocurrency certificate in the summer of 2017. This gives professional investors an easy way to add cryptocurrencies to their portfolios.

“As part of our agreed digital strategy, we are striving to combine the reliability of the classic banking system with the new opportunities offered by digitisation and blockchain technology,” said Bank Frick CEO Edi Wögerer. “Net1’s additional involvement serves to meaningfully strengthen our digital strategy.”

About Bank Frick

Bank Frick is a family-run Liechtenstein bank with headquarters in Balzers. It was founded in 1998 by Kuno Frick Sr (1938–2017), with the majority now controlled by the Kuno Frick Family Foundation. Minority shareholder Net 1 UEPS Technologies, Inc. (Net1), holds 35 per cent of Bank Frick’s share capital. Net1 is a financial technology company listed on the Nasdaq stock exchange in New York.

Bank Frick focuses on providing products and services for financial intermediaries such as fiduciaries, asset managers, payment service providers and fintechs.

Bank Frick develops tailor-made funds for intermediaries and acts as a custodian bank.

It is the only bank in Liechtenstein with acquiring licences from Visa and MasterCard.

Bank Frick employs around 90 members of staff and operates a branch in London, UK.

About Net1

Net1 is a leading provider of alternative payment systems that leverage its Universal Electronic Payment System (UEPS) or utilise its proprietary mobile technologies. The company operates market-leading payment processors in South Africa and the Republic of Korea. Through Transact24, Net1 offers debit, credit and prepaid processing and issuing services for Visa, MasterCard and China UnionPay in China and other territories across Asia-Pacific, Europe, Africa and the United States. Through Masterpayment, Net1 provides payment processing and enables working capital financing in Europe.

UEPS permits the company to facilitate biometrically secure, real-time electronic transaction processing to unbanked and under-banked populations of developing economies around the world in an online or offline environment. Net1’s UEPS/EMV solution (EMV = Europay, MasterCard, Visa) is interoperable with global EMV standards that seamlessly enable access to all UEPS functionalities in a traditional EMV environment. In addition to payments, UEPS can be used for banking, health care management, payroll, remittances, voting and identification.

Net1’s mobile technologies include its proprietary mobile payments solution, Mobile Virtual Card (MVC), which offers secure mobile-based payments, as well as mobile banking and prepaid value-added services in developed and emerging countries.

Net1 has a primary listing on the Nasdaq and a secondary listing on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange.

www.net1.com