FICO Acquires TONBELLER
Combines strengths in fraud management and financial crime prevention & compliance to address expanding global market for integrated, enterprise-class, risk-based solutions
FICO Acquires TONBELLER
Combines strengths in fraud management and financial crime prevention & compliance to address expanding global market for integrated, enterprise-class, risk-based solutions
SAN JOSE, Calif. — January 13, 2015 — FICO (NYSE:FICO), the predictive analytics and decision management software company, today announced it has acquired TONBELLER, an innovative provider of financial crime and compliance solutions based in Bensheim, Germany. The transaction has closed. Although terms have not been disclosed, the transaction is not expected to have a material impact on FICO’s 2015 financial results.
With this acquisition, FICO has moved firmly into the rapidly growing market for financial crime and compliance (FCC) solutions, promising to bring the benefits of advanced analytics and a risk-based approach to a field dominated by older, relatively inflexible, rule-based systems.
“Compliance with regulations concerning anti-money laundering, know-your-customer (KYC) and risk management imperatives has become a top priority for financial institutions as they struggle to anticipate and respond to known and emerging risks,” said Will Lansing, CEO, FICO. “The time has come to leverage advanced analytic technologies to manage risk while controlling operating costs. With this acquisition, we aim to help chief risk and compliance officers move quickly and decisively toward their goal of a common, unified view of the entire risk spectrum.”
Growing demand for financial crime and compliance solutions is being fueled by unprecedented challenges facing chief risk and compliance officers. These range from security and data risks to financial risks like credit and interest rates to corporate-level risks, including supplier/vendor relationships and reputation risk. Particularly troublesome can be the risks associated with financial crime and compliance, including various types of fraud and money laundering.
“Financial institutions today are being exposed to a wider range of risks than ever before, as they implement new technologies and open up new customer channels in a bid to remain competitive,” said Peyman Mestchian, managing partner for Chartis. “At the same time, they are facing increased regulatory scrutiny. All of this is forcing the integration of traditionally siloed financial crime, risk and compliance functions. By merging a category leader in enterprise fraud and model management with a provider of enterprise-class risk-based compliance solutions, FICO and TONBELLER aim to meet this demand head-on.”
“Most of today’s systems are inflexible and rule-based, requiring large expenditures on consulting and professional services to operate and update,” said Dr. Sebastian Hetzler, member of the board, TONBELLER. “By combining FICO predictive analytics, such as those used in its industry-leading FICO Falcon Platform, with TONBELLER’s innovative and popular risk-based FCC products, FICO will enter the market with a complete, enterprise-class offering that directly addresses the chief risk and compliance officer’s needs in a way that other vendors’ offerings cannot.”
“While demand for analytics-based FCC solutions is significant in financial services, where FICO and TONBELLER have an exceptionally strong global presence, this approach is also being embraced by businesses in non-financial industries like automotive, telecommunications, energy, logistics and retail,” said Torsten Mayer, member of the board of TONBELLER. “TONBELLER has a large customer base in these industries. FICO’s new extended solution, available on premise or in the cloud, will enable companies large and small, across industries and geographies, to realize the competitive advantages of a comprehensive, risk-based FCC solution.”
The management team and employees of TONBELLER will continue as part of FICO, contributing important domain expertise and ensuring continuity for clients and partners.
About TONBELLER
TONBELLER AG is a leading global provider of integrated IT solutions for governance, risk & compliance. TONBELLER develops and implements standardized and custom solutions based on the Siron® product family to protect against financial and white-collar crime as well as for risk management and monitoring, analysis, and reporting. The combination of innovative software technology, excellent consultancy and first-class customer support creates high-performance GRC applications that prove their effectiveness for more than 1,000 customers in the most stringently regulated industries. Through its global partner network, TONBELLER solutions and expertise are available in more than 90 countries.
About FICO
FICO (NYSE: FICO) is a leading analytics software company, helping businesses in 80+ countries make better decisions that drive higher levels of growth, profitability and customer satisfaction. The company’s groundbreaking use of Big Data and mathematical algorithms to predict consumer behavior has transformed entire industries. FICO provides analytics software and tools used across multiple industries to manage risk, fight fraud, build more profitable customer relationships, optimize operations and meet strict government regulations. Many of our products reach industry-wide adoption. These include the FICO® Score, the standard measure of consumer credit risk in the United States. FICO solutions leverage open-source standards and cloud computing to maximize flexibility, speed deployment and reduce costs. The company also helps millions of people manage their personal credit health. FICO: Make every decision count™. Learn more at www.fico.com.
FICO, Falcon and “Make every decision count” are trademarks or registered trademarks of Fair Isaac Corporation in the United States and in other countries.
For FICO news and media resources, visit www.fico.com/en/newsroom.
Statement Concerning Forward-Looking Information
Except for historical information contained herein, the statements contained in this news release that relate to FICO or its business are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the “safe harbor” provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially, including the success of the Company’s Decision Management strategy and reengineering plan, the maintenance of its existing relationships and ability to create new relationships with customers and key alliance partners, its ability to continue to develop new and enhanced products and services, its ability to recruit and retain key technical and managerial personnel, competition, regulatory changes applicable to the use of consumer credit and other data, the failure to realize the anticipated benefits of any acquisitions, continuing material adverse developments in global economic conditions, and other risks described from time to time in FICO’s SEC reports, including its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended September 30, 2014. If any of these risks or uncertainties materializes, FICO’s results could differ materially from its expectations. FICO disclaims any intent or obligation to update these forward-looking statements.