The new development center is located at Ness' offshore facility in Kosice, Slovakia.

The center's establishment is a part of a multi-year contract between Fortent and Ness Technologies. Called the Fortent Extended Development Center (EDC), the new center complements Fortent's existing R&D resources in Atlanta and London. Ness will assist Fortent's R&D organization in building this center for next-generation product development by bringing its infrastructure, resources, and experience in banking and financial services technology.

"Ness Technologies is ideally suited for Fortent, and the new center in Kosice will help us implement our plans to accelerate and expand product development, and increase geographic reach, meeting Fortent's strategic plans," said Kay LaBare, Chief Technology Officer of Fortent. "Ness will help us build a skilled team, meeting our need for rapid development."

"Risk and compliance solutions such as anti-money laundering, fraud management, or terrorist financing monitoring are very serious challenges for any financial institution," said Petr Mytina, Senior Vice President of Sales, Ness Europe. "These kinds of systems require not only advanced and high-quality engineering skills, but also a mature and trusted partner. We are very proud that Fortent found all these qualities within Ness Technologies. It is a testimony to the quality and professionalism of our team."

Ness Technologies opened its European development center in Kosice in July 2005. The center offers services based on R&D, QA/testing, maintenance and technical support. It customizes its services to each client's special needs by employing flexible service models drawn from Ness' experience. Regarding R&D, Ness' Kosice offshore center operates according to Ness' delivery model that safeguards Independent Software Vendors' (ISVs) intellectual assets and maximizes offshoring benefits.