Acquired systems and expertise expand Datacard’s position as leader in smart card issuance

Minnetonka, Minn., March 17, 2003–Datacard Group today announced it has completed the acquisition of assets from Gilles Leroux S.A., a French manufacturer of plastic card production, control and personalization systems and leading supplier of solutions to the Global System for Mobile Communication (GSM) smart card market. Datacard was awarded the right to purchase the Gilles Leroux assets in June 2002 by the Commercial Court of Orleans, France, which was overseeing Gilles Leroux since the company’s bankruptcy filing last year.

Datacard has been managing the operations of Gilles Leroux under court order since June 17, 2002. Datacard plans to continue the integration of the acquired Gilles Leroux products into its industry-leading portfolio and continue to provide service and supplies for Gilles Leroux systems currently in operation, according to Jerry Johnson, Datacard’s president and CEO.

“The systems we acquired are a perfect complement to our current offerings,” Johnson said. “They allow us to meet a wider range of customer needs and capitalize on emerging smart card opportunities in a variety of vertical markets.”

In addition to products, Datacard acquired a wealth of intellectual capital that will be important for the company’s product development efforts, according to Johnson. “The technology and talent we received in this acquisition greatly expands our engineering capabilities and allows us to bring exciting, new solutions to market,” Johnson said. “We are well positioned for sustained growth in the markets we serve.”

Highlights of the Gilles Leroux product line include the MPR smart card issuance systems and the Combi™ smart card production systems. “As card issuers make the transition to smart card technology, they will need a partner with a broad solutions portfolio and deep technical expertise.” Johnson said. “Datacard was already a trusted and highly regarded partner before this acquisition. Now, we are even better equipped to help customers achieve their business goals.”

About Datacard Group

More than seven million financial and identification cards are personalized by Datacard systems every day. As the world leader in high-volume card issuance and secure identity solutions, Datacard’s strategy is to make cards more powerful by capitalizing on smart cards, biometrics and other high-impact technologies. Customers in financial, corporate, government, education, healthcare, retail, telecommunications and transportation industries have made Datacard the world’s best-selling brand of card-based solutions (http://www.datacard.com).

Datacard Group:

Kevin Gillick
+1 952.988.2846
kevin_gillick@datacard.com