The First Twelve Months
"First Ecom.com today is one year old, and has begun 2000 with an excellent start," said Gregory Pek, president and CEO of First Ecom.com. "From very modest seed capital beginnings, the company has already raised over $18 million and grown to over 40 employees. Investors are very pleased that our NASDAQ OTC Bulletin Board quotation has been maintained without interruption, and that we have applied for a full national market listing. We've also responded to investor interest in Bermuda by listing our shares on the Bermuda Stock Exchange, and our shares recently resumed their OTC quotation on the Berlin Stock Exchange."
First Ecom.com's industry referral partners include some of the most powerful names in the e-commerce business, including Federal Express, Sybase and Intershop, whose operations vary from the United States to Australia, United Kingdom, Hong Kong SAR, China, the Philippines, Taiwan, Singapore, India, Bangladesh, Sweden, Germany and South Africa.
With regard to a growing list of merchant partners, First Ecom.com is working with a range of companies from new online businesses to major utilities such as Peoples Phone. Underpinning much of this progress is First Ecom.com's strong relationship with the Bank of Bermuda.
New Referral Agreements
In January 2000, First Ecom.com signed 13 new agreements covering co-marketing and joint e-commerce activities with Forget-IT, Pro QC Studio, Systek Information
Technology, Aeroscan Asia, Digital Island, Jumbo Mall, Crystal Asia, Electronic Economy, Quasemsoft, Asia Price, Web Avenue, Designet and Link Connect. These agreements demonstrate a growing interest in the First Ecom.com solution, as e-commerce product suppliers, system integrators and storefront solution providers understand the importance of having the ability to provide secure, easy-to-implement and low-cost online payment processing services.
Asian Solutions Center Showcases First Ecom.com Solution
Also in January, Sybase and the Hong Kong Productivity Council announced the launch of the Asian Solutions Center, a software developer hub that includes demonstrations of First Ecom.com's Payment Processing Solution. Sybase is working with First Ecom.com to provide e-solutions to serve customers requiring an e-payment processing solution. As a result, Sybase is able to offer extensive business-to-business and business-to-consumer online transaction processing services.
New E-commerce Training Initiatives
In January 2000, First Ecom.com held six e-commerce industry and technology implementation seminars for its referral partners as part of a series of business development initiatives, further reinforcing First Ecom.com's commitment to the industry. First Ecom.com recognizes that banks, their merchants and referral partners all require comprehensive training if the opportunities presented by e-commerce are to be exploited fully to the benefit of both business and consumer. These seminars include industry and technical support and will be a continuing feature of First Ecom.com's penetration of the Asian market.
Nomination for Best E-Commerce Company
In February 2000, First Ecom.com was nominated for the "Best E-Commerce Company" category in the Internet World Asia Industry Awards. The Internet World Asia Academy selected 57 finalists from more than 500 nominations submitted by public and corporate Internet users. Nominees include Internet companies and individuals that have excelled in creating and developing products and services for the Asian Internet industry.
About First Ecom.com
As a global provider of electronic payment processing, First Ecom.com provides secure, easy-to-implement and low-cost online payment processing services to merchants and banks worldwide. Through strategic partnerships with banks, ISPs, e-commerce product suppliers, system integrators and storefront solution providers, First Ecom.com will process credit card transactions made over the Internet in multiple currencies, either domestically or offshore in a tax-neutral jurisdiction.
For more information, visit http://www.firstecom.com or contact First Ecom.com at +(852) 2801-5181 or by e-mail at merchant@firstecom.com.