Innovative European financing for Dutch software company CM.com
The European Investment Bank (EIB) has made available a EUR 10 million facility for software company CM.com, of Breda in the Netherlands, to speed up innovation and development of its messaging, payments, voice and digital security applications. The financing will be guaranteed under the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI), part of the Investment Plan for Europe of the European Commission.
The facility will allow CM.com to broaden its technological advantage and speed up the roll-out of the digital security solutions it develops. The loan is also beneficial for maintaining specialised jobs in Europe, as the capital will mostly be used for research and development purposes. Furthermore, CM.com will invest in new “Internet of Things” (IoT) applications and the further development of its ‘One Platform’ philosophy. This means that all mobile and digital functionalities, including messaging, payments, voice and digital identification, should be easy-to-use and available through one single platform.
European Commission Vice-President Andrus Ansip, in charge of the Digital Single Market, said: “If we want the EU to be a tech leader, then we have to encourage our companies develop bold ideas and ensure they receive financial backing. This is exactly what today's transaction aims to achieve. Strengthening cybersecurity in Europe is one of the Commission's priorities and CM.com is contributing to this objective."
"This project really is a showcase for how the EIB can support cutting-edge technology, also thanks to the EU budget guarantee." said EIB Vice-President Pim van Ballekom. "The Netherlands has a fantastic ecosystem of small and medium sized tech companies that people on the street may not have heard of yet, even if they use their services every day. I’m glad that the Bank can support CM.com and other companies in the sector, they really are a flagship for the Dutch knowledge based economy."
Jeroen van Glabbeek, CEO of CM.com, added: "The EIB loan is proof that CM.com is going in the right direction. Therefore, we are proud that the CM.com is the first in its specific part of the sector to receive EIB financing. This is part of a larger investment plan for the coming years. With it, we will be focusing on a fully integrated multifunctional platform for messaging, telephony, payments and access.”
Background
The European Investment Bank, the European Union’s long-term lending institution, is committed to supporting implementation of the Paris Climate Agreement and backing climate related investment around the world. In the past year, the EIB has made a record amount of EUR 2.56bn available for projects in the Netherlands alone.
The Investment Plan for Europe, the so-called Juncker Plan, focuses on boosting investments to create jobs and growth by making smarter use of new and existing financial resources, removing obstacles to investment and providing visibility and technical assistance to investment projects. The European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI) is the central pillar of the Juncker Plan. It provides a first loss guarantee, allowing the EIB to invest in more, often riskier, projects. So far, the projects and agreements approved for financing under the EFSI are expected to mobilise more than €256 billion in investments and support around 539,000 SMEs across all 28 Member States.
CM.com is a mobile services company, based in the Netherlands. The company was formed in 1999, and provides a number of different software solutions for direct (voice) messaging, ecommerce payments and digital identification. In 2006, it was ranked by Deloitte as one of the fastest growing Dutch tech companies.
CM.com offices: Brussels | London | Paris | Frankfurt | Cape Town | Tokyo | Hong Kong | Shenzhen | Shanghai | Breda | Utrecht | The Hague | Enschede