Card Manufacturer TCT Lands £3.2 Million Infusion to Grow Operations (Jan. 9, 2014)
Thames Card Technology Ltd. (TCT) has landed a capital infusion of £3.2 million (US$5.3 million) to expand its operations. Already among the U.K.’s largest manufacturers of secure chip payment, gift and loyalty cards, TCT produced more than 175 million cards in 2013. The company will use the new capital—from U.K. investment firm BGF—to grow its senior personnel team and bolster operations at its Visa– and MasterCard-accredited card manufacturing facility in Essex, England.
TCT’s expansion is being driven by growth of the prepaid card segment worldwide and the rapid expansion of banking in developing economies, according to the company. “The increasing number of banking customers in the developing world, particularly in Africa, combined with the ubiquitous migration to EMV secure chip cards presents a tremendous growth opportunity for us,” noted Paul Underwood, founder and managing director, TCT. Prepaid cards in Europe will remain a key focus for TCT, as will the company’s established customers in retail, gift and loyalty, he added.
Global prepaid card deposits nearly tripled worldwide between 2008 and 2012 and are projected to grow to $168.4 billion in 2015, according to Mercator Advisory Group. “After 19 years of funding the business with its own capital, we felt that the scale of today’s global opportunity justified an injection of equity finance,” said Underwood. As a result of the investment, BGF Investment Director Rory Pope will join TCT’s board of directors.
