PORTLAND, Ore. – March 27, 2008 – iovation, the device reputation authority for the Internet, today announced it has successfully completed a $15 million investment round by securing growth capital from SAP Ventures, the corporate venture capital arm of SAP AG (NYSE: SAP), and European Founders, a leading investor for emerging growth companies looking to expand into Europe. The two companies join Intel Capital, Intel's global investment group, as iovation's initial group of investors.
"We are extremely excited about our new relationships with SAP Ventures, European Founders and Intel," said Greg Pierson, CEO of iovation. "These companies are well established, recognized leaders in the global market. They've built strong business relationships in Europe and Asia and have the market expertise that supports iovation's ambitious growth plan into these strategic markets. There is a tremendous amount of synergy between our entire team of investors and we look forward to the business opportunities these partnerships will create for iovation."
iovation pioneered the first device reputation service that provides real-time fraud and abuse protection for a number of verticals including online retail, financial services, Internet gaming and online social networking sites. Using patented technology, iovation exposes known fraudsters and abusers, and their relationships between suspicious devices, so they can no longer hide behind multiple identities to perpetrate online fraud and abuse. Customers sharing iovation's network of device reputation intelligence are better equipped to prevent online fraud and abuse while increasing operational efficiencies and business revenues through more precise risk management.
"SAP Ventures is committed to innovative technologies that enhance the way businesses protect their online environments," said Nino Marakovic, head of SAP Ventures. "iovation's unique device reputation network enables companies to strengthen their fraud detection capabilities so they can proactively identify fraudulent devices on their network and connect the dots between all devices and accounts they are associated with worldwide. We are very confident in iovation's growing success and look forward to working with them to capitalize on their unique market position."
"As a proven leader in online fraud and abuse prevention solutions, iovation is perfectly positioned to drive innovation in an industry poised for aggressive growth," said Oliver Samwer, co-founder of European Founders. "The European market is seeing rapid growth across the e-commerce sector, and iovation's device-based reputation fraud management tools are a critical component in providing stronger fraud management solutions that protect online businesses and their customers from fraud and abuse. Given iovation's innovative technology and our ability to successfully expand business in Europe, we are confident we can help iovation realize their full potential in these emerging markets."
iovation, headquartered in Portland, Oregon pioneered the use of device reputation for managing online fraud, abusive behavior and multi-factor authentication. Today, iovation manages the reputation of millions of Internet-enabled devices worldwide, allowing its customers to control online fraud and abuse while benefiting from sharing device reputation intelligence. For more information on iovation and the company's products, visit www.iovation.com.