The Board of DataCash Group is pleased to announce 2007 has been another successful year for the Group.
Our e-commerce transactions have continued to grow strongly for existing UK and international customers. Our reputation for dependable service and product breadth has also attracted some sizeable new customers. Recently signed contracts include TUI Travel plc (3 years for both Cardholder Present and Cardholder Not Present transactions) and an e-commerce division of Tesco.
The recently acquired EuroCommerce business, which we bought to strengthen our position in the airline and travel sectors, has, as expected and announced at the time of the acquisition, lost money in the period of ownership. However, the industry response to the acquisition has been very positive (it has recently signed a contract with GermanWings) and we expect this business to show profitability in 2009.
The results of the DataCash business, before the EuroCommerce losses, are expected to be in line with market expectations.
We have invested heavily in our technology infrastructure during 2007, especially towards the year end, and consequently our operating expenses will rise significantly in 2008. We believe the investment will rapidly bear fruit as more of our customers gain access to the wide range of payment types, risk management services and banking relationships the Group has established. We have positioned ourselves to take advantage of the growing willingness of retailers to outsource their total payment processing needs. The investments we have made, and will continue to make, provide another step change in both our capacity and our capabilities. We believe this provides a significant differentiator between us and our competitors.
The Group's results are expected to be announced in April, and we look forward to providing a further update on progress at that time.