BUSINESS IN THE FIRST QUARTER OF 2013: €15.6 million (-18.6%)

The Be2bill e-money offer is carrying the B to B business:
B to B turnover excluding Micro-payment at +38%

Brussels, 18 April 2013, 6:30 PM
Regulated information

The Rentabiliweb Group (ISIN BE0946620946 — Trading symbol: BIL) generated revenue of €15.6 million in the first three months of 2013. In keeping with the Group development strategy, the activities during the quarter were marked by:

• a 38% increase of the B to B business excluding Micro-payment, proof of the strong commercial dynamism of the Be2bill card payment solution, which is the Group’s priority area of growth and that attracted new customer signatures and strategic partnerships during the quarter.
• the voluntary continuation of the conversion of Micro-payment customers to payment by card, thereby resulting in an automatic revenue decline. Indeed, the Group recalls that this transition resulted in a change of accounting methods since, with the payments by card, only the commission is booked and no longer the processed volume of business as was the case with Micro-payments;
• a B to C activity with a focus on developing the Astrology business – that signed a first affiliation contract with one of the leading vendors in France, 20 minutes – but that is still suffering from the difficulties in the Dating market.

Business in the first quarter of 2013

B to B: new structuring steps in the growth of the e-money business

The B to B business stands at €6.8 million, a decline of 3% relative to the first quarter of 2012. Excluding micro-payment, the B to B segment increased by €1.3 million, i.e. +38%, indicative of the strong commercial development of the Be2bill e-money activity, a very promising market in which the Group expects to hold a significant share in the near future.

The Rentabiliweb strategy, that includes massive efforts devoted to launching the e-money activity and no further investments in its Micro-payment activity, has had significant mechanical impacts on the Revenue. Indeed, with Micro-payments, the entire processed business volume is booked in the Group’s sales, whereas with e-money, only the commission resulting from the processed business volume is booked.

As part of its quick development plan for e-money, the Group took several structuring steps during the first quarter, including:

• obtaining the VISA “Merchant Agent” licence;
• obtaining the highest security level for banking transactions via the PCI DSS Service Provider level 1 certificate. Rentabiliweb is now protecting its customers from all liability involving the processing of bank data, while guaranteeing to reduce their risk of fraud and financial incidents;
• the partnership with Evoke for the kick-off of a click & collect solution with integrated payment;
• and the signing in March of a partnership with the Jaina Capital galaxy of sites for which Rentabiliweb will be the payment operator for national and international collection services. The Be2bill solution is already operational on sites such as made.com, littlefashiongallery.com, famihero.com, etc.

For its part, the Direct marketing activity posted growth of +86%. After the restructuring in 2012, the French wage bill was appreciably reduced in favour of a global optimisation. The Group’s various subsidiaries working in the direct marketing sector have been operationally merged. The legal component of the strategy is in progress. This converging approach to payment issues and marketing loyalty-building is already generating commercial synergies for Be2bill clients.

B to C: anticipated slowdown of Dating and continuing development of Astrology

The B to C activity stood at €8.9 million on 31 March 2013 versus €12.2 million in the first quarter of 2012. Sequentially, the 13% decline is indicative of the change currently in progress in the Dating market.

Having anticipated this change, the Group has concentrated its investments on the development of content for women, well-being and astrology as of 2011. As such, the Group’s astrology subsidiary signed its first affiliation contract with the 20Minutes group in March 2013.

Outlook

Be2bill is continuing its commercial development. The deployment plan for the e-money activity is totally in line with the expectations of the Group’s management, which is confirming its announced objective of a minimum run rate of €750 million with the card payment activity.

Next communication

Publication of the interim results: 30 July 2013.

Rentabiliweb and Evoke launch the first click & collect solution with integrated payment

• Be2bill can now provide its services to collection point networks
• All retail chains and networks have access to a comprehensive, powerful “web to store” solution

Brussels, 3 April 2013,

With more than two out of three consumers researching their purchases online before going to a brick and mortar store, the convergence between online retail and physical points of sale is a major growth and value-added vector for merchants, retail chains and their point of sale networks, whether franchised or branches.

In response to this trend, the agence Evoke, which provides the “web to store” solution Smart Traffik, and Be2bill, the Rentabiliweb Group‘s payment solution, have launched a “Click & Collect” software solution that directly incorporates the payment function.

This solution allows merchants to offer their clients innovative payment and collection scenarios:

• online reservations with total or partial online payment and collection at a point of sale;
• online reservations with partial or total payment at a point of sale.

This means that web users can check the local availability of products at the start of the sales tunnel, pay using the scenario of their choice, and pick up the chosen product at a store, one hour after ordering.

An IFOP study also shows that more than 90% of consumers would use the Click & Collect option if it were offered on retail chain or brand desktop or mobile websites*.

Another major advantage of Click & Collect is that it provides major networks and retail chains with a turnkey solution for monitoring and breaking down web-driven revenues and sales for a multi-chain or multi-channel network. Each sale can thus be linked to a sign, a retail chain and one of the chain’s stores.

“With this new solution Rentabiliweb can now offer its payment card service to even the most extensive European franchise networks.” Thibaut Faurès Fustel de Coulanges, CEO of Rentabiliweb Europe.

“Store location, stock level indicators, store pick-up management, reporting, matching of sales to chains and channels are the key functionalities demanded by consumers. We have been working on this Click & Collect project for a long time, as we are aware of the importance of having a cross-channel strategy. Until we met Rentabiliweb, we had not found a payment solution provider who could manage the associated challenges. With Be2bill, we can now incorporate all the payment functions into our solution, both for desktop and mobile web users.” Thomas Le Guyader, EvoKe Cross Channel Expert.

The solution is already operational. Numerous chains and brands have entrusted EvoKe with deploying their web to store initiatives, both in France and in Europe, including Carrefour Drive, Europcar, La Maison des Travaux, Speedy and SuperDry.

* IFOP L4psilon study, October 2009

RENTABILIWEB REACHES THE HIGHEST LEVEL OF SECURITY FOR PAYMENT CARD TRANSACTIONS

• Be2bill is the first French acquiring institution to become a VISA-certified “Merchant Agent”
• PCI DSS certification has been extended to Level 1 Service Provider
• Rentabiliweb now protects clients against all payment card processing liability and guarantees them a reduction in fraud and financial incident risk

Brussels, 19 March 2013, 07:30

Be2bill, the specialized online payment solution provided by Rentabiliweb Europe, is the first acquiring institution in France to obtain “Merchant Agent” certification and the third French company to have obtained this trusted third party certification from the leading international network in the world, VISA.

In order to continue to guarantee their transactions, bank networks now require merchants to work exclusively with accredited service providers, such as Be2bill.

Rentabiliweb Europe also announces the renewal of its PCI DSS (Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard) certification, which has been extended to Level 1 Service Provider. Level 1 has the strictest IT security requirements for payment card information processing.

The PCI DSS standard is extensively used in English-speaking countries and increasingly so in France. This standard is primarily a means of protecting payment card information for all merchant sites and payment solution providers that process, transmit and store payment card information.

Being PCI DSS-compliant, or using a certified payment services provider (PSP), exempts merchants from payment card processing liability, in particular if a point of compromise (POC) is discovered. In a PCI DSS environment, merchants no longer risk incurring penalties from the interbank networks (Visa, MasterCard and GCB), which are often extremely high.

Obtaining PCI DSS certification is a demanding, complex and time-consuming process for merchants. The Be2bill payment solution means that merchants can entrust the security of their transactions to a reliable third party that has the highest level of certification, as Be2bill manages and is fully responsible for 100% of the payment card transaction process, thereby enabling its clients to focus fully on the development of their core business.

As a PCI DSS level 1 service provider, Rentabiliweb Europe undergoes rigorous compliance audits performed by a recognized independent organization, the Qualified Security Assessor (QSA). Hervé Schauer Consultants, a leading French IT security firm, advises Rentabiliweb on audits. Control audits are performed quarterly and cover aspects such as network reliability and configuration rules analysis, and ensure that there are no security flaws. They will be performed by an Approved Scanning Vendor, Qualys.

Over and above the benefits for the group and its clients, extending the PCI DSS certificate to the highest level of security was a vital stage for Rentabiliweb in preparing its application for lending institution status.

“For over 10 years we have been working not only on compliance, but also on defining new data security standards. PCI DSS certification, for which there were 12 requirements and over 120 control points, rewards our extensive human and technical investments over the last 20 months”: Romain Pera, Rentabiliweb Europe Technical Director.

“I had made the commitment to bring the Rentabiliweb Group to the highest technical level in terms of sensitive data processing, in order to serve our most demanding e-retailer clients. This commitment has been honored.” Jean-Baptiste Descroix-Vernier, Rentabiliweb Group President.

* The PCI DSS standard is mandated by the leading payment card providers. It determines the rules and processes with which companies that process, transmit and store payment card data must comply.

For more on Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS): https://www.pcisecuritystandards.org/security_standards/documents.php

Consult Rentabiliweb Europe’s PCI DSS certificate

Consult the list of VISA’s certified agents

Find out more on “Visa Merchant Agent”

Rentabiliweb forms an online payment partnership with Jaïna Capital

• Rentabiliweb is now the payment provider for Jaïna Capital portfolio websites
• The payment solution, Be2bill, is already available on websites such as made.com, littlefashiongallery.com and famihero.com.
• This partnership covers both national and international payment collection services

Be2bill, the online payment solution by Rentabiliweb Group, announces the signature of a global partnership with the Jaïna Capital venture fund managed by Marc Simoncini. Under this partnership, Be2bill solutions will be used to process and optimize online payments on websites in Jaïna Capital’s portfolio.

The agreement covers all the merchant websites in which Jaïna has invested and provides them with:

• one-step collection transactions in both euros and foreign currency;
• intelligent fraud control and risk management in France and internationally;
• the guarantee of an conversion rate optimised;
• intuitive reporting and monitoring tools;
• quality assistance and smooth technical integration.

“We have chosen to develop a partnership with Be2bill, as it is one of the only players of the market that offers a solution for online payments that is both comprehensive and optimized. It is vital for the websites and brands we support that we work with a reliable, capable technical partner who understands our key e-merchant requirements, and who can provide a flexible solution that is easy to integrate. This partnership to manage our payments in both euros and sterling will help increasing conversion rates on the French and international markets. In the future we will be working on other brands or other payment kinematics”: Emmanuel Prevost, founding partner of Jaïna Capital.

“Jaïna Capital only invests in high-growth projects and supports some of the most innovative online businesses in Europe. It is also a team with considerable expertise in the field of e-trade logics. This partnership will be very constructive”: Thibaut Faurès Fustel de Coulanges, CEO of Rentabiliweb Europe.

Operational roll-out of the Be2bill e-money offer

Strengthening of the B to C activities that continue to strongly generate cash flow

Brussels, 19 February 2013, 7:30 AM
Regulated information

Rentabiliweb is today publishing its results for fiscal 2012. The year was marked by the ramp-up of the Be2bill card payment solution, a market in which the group is positioning itself as a major player, and by the simultaneous slowdown of its historical activities, such as advertising and micro-payment.

The Group’s growth relies on two major axes:

• The complementary activities of payment, direct marketing and telecom services within a B to B segment that focuses on the most relevant offers in response to the profitability stakes of e-commerce (traffic acquisition, customer loyalty-building and optimisation of the transformation rates).
• The B to C activities that strongly generate cash flow are providing the Group with additional skilled leverage relative to the issues surrounding e-commerce. This division is made up of several segments: dating, astrology, female well-being and communities.

According to Jean-Baptiste Descroix-Vernier, Chairman of the Group’s Board of Directors :
« Assisting e-retailers is a major issue for actors on the web. Anticipating the changes in the behaviour of web surfers and the stakes for e-retailers over the course of the last 2 years, Rentabiliweb put together a unique offer that combines payment and web marketing. This converging offer is not available from traditional banks, nor from Payment Service Providers (PSP), nor from e-marketing actors. Less than one year after its initial marketing, the Be2bill payment solution is already being used by more than 200 e-retailers. The success encountered since its kick-off is confirming the relevance of the strategic analysis. »

2012 results

• The revenue is equal to €70 million, thereby reflecting the switch between the historic activities and the new growth levers. B to C experienced a difficult economic situation that weighed on household spending and the advertising market. In the B to B segment, the key phenomenon was the restructuring of the micro-payment activity’s client portfolio, and the discontinued marketing of Facebook Credits which, for information, had amounted to €3.5 million in 2011.
• The Gross cash flow rate remains on a high level and continues to improve, to 58.9% versus 57.2% in 2011.
• The company hired new and high potential people, it made major investments and underwent legal reorganisations in order to adapt the company to its new profile. The impact is equal to €3.1 million for the financial year, but promises to produce synergies that will start to bear fruit in 2013.
• The impact on the expenses related to the kick-off and development of Be2bill since April 2012 were equal to €5.7 million for the financial year. For example, the extension of the PCI DSS approval (international transaction safeguarding standards), expected in 2013, was entirely financed in 2012.
• The Group once again points out its very solid financial situation, with shareholders equity of €68 million, no indebtedness and a net positive cash situation of €7.8 million.

Key figures for the 2012 financial year

Business assessment for the 2012 financial year

B to B segment – Acquisition, retention, monetisation : building on synergies in the service of e-commerce

The B to B activity generated revenue of €26 million in 2012, versus €34.1 million in 2011.

The payment segment, consisting of micro-payment and bank card collections (Be2bill), posted lower revenue notably as a result of the discontinued marketing of Facebook Credits that represented €3.5 million in 2011, and of the restructuring of the micro-payment activity’s client portfolio.

In the second half of the year, the Be2bill collection offer saw very encouraging commercial momentum that resulted in the signing of contracts with major references such as Winamax, Kenzo or pêcheur.com (Oxylane group), as well as a very satisfactory ramp-up: each month, 100% of the clients entrust a growing share of their flows to Be2bill. Be2bill also consolidated its relations with its partners, notably CMS such as Prestashop, Magento, etc. The continuing roll-out of the card payment solution to a broad range of e-retailers and the finalising of the Be2bill structuring should make it possible for this activity to reach financial balance in the final months of 2013.

The business evolution within the direct marketing segment reflects the tighter marketing budgets of advertisers, as well as the Group’s desire to streamline around its most value-generating offers. Eperflex, the solution for retargeting cyber-buyers via e-mail, is establishing itself as a reference in the market, and has already signed exclusive agreements with advertisers such as Zalando, Pixmania, Lastminute, Mistergooddeal and Spartoo. Indeed, Eperflex helps them to generate additional sales while decreasing the number of abandoned shopping carts and failed payments.

The telecom segment continued to take shape around a range of offers that includes the routing of SMS campaigns, the supply of corporate telephone services and call centres, facilities management as well as the processing of surcharged numbers (0800 platform). Contracts were signed with major clients in 2012, and the effects on the revenue will be felt as of 2013.

B to C segment : Constant development of Astrology

The revenue of the B to C segment was equal to €44 million in 2012, versus €49.1 million in 2011.

The lower revenue of the Dating activity, linked to a difficult and competitive context, was brought under control and is now being offset by astrology, that has seen continuous growth since its integration into the Group.

The Astrology activity is benefiting from the market’s off-line to online transition. Combined with the kick-off of new products and the exploitation of new distribution channels such as mobile phones, this transformation is providing the basis for a solid revenue increase in 2012.

Progress of the Gross Margin rate

The Group’s gross cash flow stands at €41.2 million versus €47.6 million in 2012, meaning a gross cash flow rate of 58.9%, which notably translates an increase of 8 points for the B to B segment’s gross cash flow rate thanks to the rationalisation of the micro-payment activity’s client portfolio. The B to C segment maintained a very satisfactory gross cash flow rate (68.1% versus 72.2% in 2011), a testament to the good quality of its long-term relations with its partners.

An evolution of the Operating Profit that reflects the implementation of the growth strategy

The Group’s current operating profit is equal to €3.1 million, versus €15.9 million in 2011.

The B to B activity’s current operating profit was heavily impacted by the negative contribution of Be2bill in the amount of €5.7 million, notably for employment costs, marketing costs and consulting. Within this activity, the Group is now positioned to live up to its high ambitions for conquering market shares.

In the B to C segment, the current operating profit is equal to €11 million. Operating and personnel expenses were brought under control, thereby allowing the marketing investments for the Astrology activity to continue.

The decline of the current operating profit, that stands at €1.2 million, can primarily be explained by the existence of exceptional and non-recurring costs in 2012 (primarily the non-payment of a price supplement and a payment default by one of our customers after the bankruptcy of one of its partners), whereas the Group had recorded, in the 1st half of 2011, exceptional proceeds of €2.5 million (unwinding of a guarantee of liabilities related to a previous acquisition).

In the end, the consolidated net profit is equal to €1 million at 31 December 2012.

A solid financial situation

For 2012, the available cash flow stands at €1.6 million, while net cash is equal to €7.8 million.

The Group continues to post a solid financial structure with shareholders equity, on 31 December 2012, equal to €68.5 million with no financial indebtedness.
The strategy and the efforts made in 2012 now allow the Rentabiliweb Group to expect lasting results. The early indicators for 2013 are providing confirmation of the Group’s strategy choice.

Next communication

Publication of the revenue for the first quarter of 2013: Thursday 18 April 2013.

APPENDICES

In accordance with the regulations in force, the Rentabiliweb Group releases the following stock market information in light of the capital increase of 30 November 2012.
The shares are continuously listed on compartment C of Euronext Brussels and Euronext Paris under ticker BIL and ISIN Code BE0946620946 under the single order book system.

Capital composition (background data)

Following the capital increase implemented on 30 November 2012 involving the exercise of 36.000 warrants, Rentabiliweb Group’s share capital now breaks down as follows:

Share Capital: 23,395.607.04 €
Total number of shares with voting rights: 17,862,905
Total number of profit shares with voting rights: 3,432,944
Total number of voting rights (denominator): 21,295,849
Number of warrants*: 2,396,000 (of which 1,939,350 allocated and exercisable) each giving right to one share with voting right
Statutory notification threshold: 3%

This information constitutes background data in compliance with Article 15 of the Law of 2 May 2007 relating to the disclosure of major shareholdings in listed companies.

* As is the case each year, the Chairman Descroix-Vernier has redistributed his entire allocation among the most deserving employees.