wirecard

Wirecard AG
	Wirecard corporate logo
Company type	Public (TecDAX / WDI ); ISIN DE0007472060
Industry	Financial Services, Technology
Founded	Munich, Germany, 1999
Headquarters	Berlin, Germany
Key people	Dr. Markus Braun, CEO ; Burkhard Ley, CFO ; Rüdiger Trautmann, COO
Products	Electronic Payment, Risk Management, Internet Payment Service, Card Issuing/Acquiring, Banking
Revenue	Revenue: €81.94 million; EBIT: €18.56 million; (FY 2006)
Number of employees	361 (FY 2006)
Website	www.wirecard.com

Wirecard AG is a global financial services and technology company headquartered in Germany. The company provides payment processing, card issuing and risk management services to more than 7.000 corporate customers worldwide. Its new Internet payment service "Wirecard" competes with PayPal and Western Union. Wirecard Bank AG operates under a German Banking License and is a Principal Member of VISA, MasterCard and JCB. Wirecard AG is listed on the Frankfurt Securities Exchange.

Financial Information

Wirecard AG reported consolidated full-year revenues of EUR 81.94 million for fiscal 2006. The proforma comparative figure for the previous year stands at EUR 55.5 million, translating into growth of around 47 percent. Operating earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) rose by around 90 percent to EUR 18.56 million in 2006, up from EUR 9.8 million in fiscal 2005 ^[1].

Wirecard AG is listed on the TecDAX ^[2] index of Deutsche Börse since September 18, 2006 and now ranks among the 30 largest German technology companies below the DAX. As of December 31, 2006 Wirecard reached position 15 on the TecDAX ranking of Deutsche Börse AG in terms of market capitalization and position 18 in terms of order book turnover. Diluted and basic earnings per share amounted to EUR 0.20 in FY 2006, compared to EUR 0.13 in FY 2005.

Products & Services

In November 2006, Wirecard launched an Internet payment service called "Wirecard". By registering online the consumer opens an account at Wirecard Bank which he can load by cash, cards, direct debit, wire transfer or various local payment schemes. The service includes a free virtual prepaid MasterCard for consumers that can be used to pay at millions of MasterCard locations world-wide. In addition to standard MasterCard products, the Wirecard system also enables international users to send each other money in real-time. An optional physical MasterCard enables users to pay at 24.7 million MasterCard brick&mortar acceptance points and to withdraw cash at nearly 1 million ATMs worldwide.

Wirecard AG's electronic payment processing and risk management platform supports more than 85 local and international payment and fraud protection schemes. Wirecard AG is a member of ADP CardClear and IATA.

Wirecard's Supplier and Commission Payments (SCP) product enables automated global settlement of payments to suppliers and sales agents. The service is based on an automated issuing of "virtual" credit cards by Wirecard Bank AG. Supplier or commission payouts to be transferred internationally (e.g. payment of intermediary commissions by hotels to travel agencies) can be processed and settled by electronic dispatch of single- and restricted-use “virtual” credit card numbers.

Wirecard Bank AG provides card acquiring services to corporate clients for VISA, MasterCard and JCB. Various types of credit and debit cards are issued for private and corporate customers.

Bank Status

Since January 1, 2006 Wirecard Bank AG is part of the Wirecard Group. Wirecard Bank holds a full banking license and is a Principal Member of VISA, MasterCard and JCB. The bank's deposits are secured by the Deposit Protection Fund of the Association of German Banks (Einlagensicherungsfonds deutscher Banken e.V).

Recently Wirecard Bank opened its virtual branch inside the 3-D virtual world Second Life.

References

Press Coverage

External links

[1] "Wirecard AG / Annual Report 2006" (PDF).

[2] "Deutsche Börse / Official listing of TecDAX member companies".

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