(Oslo 23.08.01) EDB Business Partner`s wholly owned subsidiary EDB Fellesdata has signed a Letter of intent to acquire Infovention AB. The purchase price is SEK 20 million, with a possibility of a further payment to shareholders of up to SEK 40 million, depending on future earnings. The acquired company will become a subsidiary of EDB Fellesdata.

Infovention is a Swedish IT consultant company that was founded in 1997. The company has approximately 80 employees. Infovention delivers business critical solutions with a focus on the Bank and Finance sector, and has a very strong competence and experience from large projects with integration of advanced and critical solutions. Large projects include Internet banking solutions to FöreningsSparbanken, the Norwegian SpareBank1 Gruppen and Firstviewbank in Denmark.

Infovention reported an unaudited turnover of SEK 75.8 million in the fiscal year ended 30 April 2001, with a pre-tax profit of SEK 8.4 million.

"The acquisition of Infovention is a step in EDB Business Partner's strategy to expand its geographical presence. The solutions offered by Infovention, together with EDB Fellesdata's competence and solutions will strengthen our position in the European banking and finance sector. This acquisition gives us valuable expertise as well as supplementing our product portfolio with new systems that can be integrated with our other banking systems. The expertise and applications that Infovention offers will also be important in our international expansion, and represent an important channel into the Swedish market", comments Ole Trasti, Executive Vice President, Bank & Finance.

"We are very positive to becoming a part of the EDB Business Partner Group. EDB Fellesdata and Infovention complement each other in a good way, and together we will have the opportunity to become one of the leading IT solution and service providers within the Swedish banking and finance sector. The EDB Fellesdata product portfolio and ASP services combined with our expertise in advanced Internet- and system integration solutions will have great potential for new business in the banking and finance market", comments Kim Hallenheim, Managing Director in Infovention.

Contact names:
Ole Trasti, Executive Vice President, Bank & Finance, EDB Business Partner,
Tel. +47 22 52 82 60, +47 90 08 91 00

Kim Hallenheim, Managing Director, Infovention
Tel. +46 8 441 57 42, +46 73 3471 501