WAYNE, Pa., April 22, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Safeguard Scientifics, Inc. (NYSE: SFE) today announced that its partner company, DriveFactor, Inc., was acquired by an undisclosed strategic buyer for approximately $22 million. Safeguard expects to receive cash proceeds of approximately $10 million, representing an approximate 2x cash-on-cash return. Approximately $1.1 million of such proceeds will be held in escrow until April 2016.
"DriveFactor has built the leading independent telematics platform for usage based insurance ("UBI")," said Philip D. Moyer, Managing Director, Technology at Safeguard and Board Member at DriveFactor. "DriveFactor has been at the epicenter of connecting mobile, cloud, big data and telematics technologies into the automotive insurance and automotive manufacturing industries, and its acquisition is an important milestone for Steve McKay, Mac Fraser and the rest of the DriveFactor team. The company's vision and technology have been widely recognized as pioneering. With its new parent company, we expect to see the DriveFactor team transform the safety of driving, the quality of underwriting and the overall consumer experience of insurance and driving."
Safeguard had deployed $4.5 million in DriveFactor since December 2011 and at the time of the acquisition had a 41% primary ownership position. In just more than three years, DriveFactor secured its position as a leader in UBI and grew its revenue through white-label opportunities with global partners. The DriveFactor platform accepts driving data from virtually any vehicle telematics technology and is easily integrated with a client's enterprise system. At the time of the acquisition, DriveFactor's platform was live in market on three continents.
"For more than 60 years, Safeguard has fostered innovations that have had a transformative impact on our personal and professional lives," said Stephen T. Zarrilli, President and CEO at Safeguard. "Our track record demonstrates our ability to build value in our partner companies, making them attractive acquisition targets for top-tier, industry leading companies. We congratulate the team at DriveFactor on this tremendous accomplishment."
"We are grateful for the endless support we've received from the entire team at Safeguard," said Steve McKay, Founder and CEO of DriveFactor. "This is an exciting new chapter in DriveFactor's history, and we couldn't have realized this milestone without our financial backers and the commitment of our employees."
About Safeguard Scientifics
Safeguard Scientifics, Inc. (NYSE:SFE) has a distinguished track record of fostering innovation and building market leaders. For six decades, Safeguard has been providing growth capital and operational support to entrepreneurs across an evolving spectrum of industries. Today, Safeguard is focused specifically on two sectors—healthcare and technology. Specifically, Safeguard targets early- and growth-stage companies in advertising technology, digital media, financial technology, enterprise software, Internet of Things, devices, diagnostics, digital health and healthcare IT. For more information, please visit www.safeguard.com or Follow Us on Twitter @safeguard.
Forward-looking Statements
Except for the historical information and discussions contained herein, statements contained in this release may constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Our forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties. The risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially include, among others, our ability to make good decisions about the deployment of capital, the fact that our partner companies may vary from period to period, our substantial capital requirements and absence of liquidity from our partner company holdings, fluctuations in the market prices of our publicly traded partner company holdings, competition, our inability to obtain maximum value for our partner company holdings, our ability to attract and retain qualified employees, market valuations in sectors in which our partner companies operate, our inability to control our partner companies, our need to manage our assets to avoid registration under the Investment Company Act of 1940, and risks associated with our partner companies, including the fact that most of our partner companies have a limited history and a history of operating losses, face intense competition and may never be profitable, the effect of economic conditions in the business sectors in which Safeguard's partner companies operate, and other uncertainties described in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Many of these factors are beyond the Company's ability to predict or control. As a result of these and other factors, the Company's past financial performance should not be relied on as an indication of future performance. The Company does not assume any obligation to update any forward-looking statements or other information contained in this press release.
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SOURCE Safeguard Scientifics
