TradeBeam Receives Funding from The Carlyle Group; Global Private Equity Firm Sees Software Provider as Leader in Fast-Growing Global Trade Management Arena, Joins Existing Investors in Contributing $18 Million

San Mateo, CA - TradeBeam Holdings, Inc., a leading provider of Global Trade Management (GTM) solutions, announced today that it has received new funding led by Carlyle Venture Partners, the US venture arm of The Carlyle Group, one of the world’s leading private equity firms. Also participating in the round, which totals $18.25 million, are existing TradeBeam investors Sigma Partners, Enterprise Partners Venture Capital, Sprout Group and Silicon Valley Bancventures.

Since its founding, TradeBeam has grown rapidly to become a major force in the GTM marketplace. Through a series of strategic acquisitions and the integration work of its management and product development teams, the company has brought to market a hosted end-to-end solution that links the physical and financial supply chain and enables companies to manage and execute global trade activities all from within a single software platform. More than 3,000 enterprises worldwide are currently leveraging the TradeBeam GTM solution, including such industry giants as Neiman Marcus, Liz Claiborne, General Motors Holden, Delphi and Stryker Instruments.

Global Trade Management is one of the few un-automated areas of the enterprise and has emerged as the next great opportunity for business process improvement. As the only vendor in the marketplace with a solution capable of managing the flow of goods, funds and information seamlessly through a robust and secure application service provider model, TradeBeam is clearly the market leader in this category,” said Allan C. Thygesen, managing director of The Carlyle Group, who has taken a seat on the TradeBeam board of directors as a result of the investment.

Like TradeBeam, The Carlyle Group is focused on working with global companies in the automotive, aerospace, banking, consumer goods and medical instrument sectors. “The breadth and reach of its integrated applications, coupled with the strength and savvy of its management team, makes TradeBeam a very exciting investment opportunity for The Carlyle Group,” Thygesen added. “We look forward to playing a role in the company’s continued growth and success.”

The new funding will be used to facilitate the expansion of sales and marketing activities and international operations to further establish TradeBeam’s leadership position within GTM, a space that many industry analysts are recognizing as increasingly important to the continuing globalization of business. TradeBeam also may use the new capital resources to pursue additional acquisitions that support its strategy for long-term growth and leadership in the space.

Over the past 18 months, TradeBeam has acquired and successfully integrated other leading software companies and assets, such as Qiva and SupplySolution, which have helped expand its product capabilities and penetration of key markets.

Companies are racing to exploit demand opportunities lurking in new global markets,” stated AMR Research analyst Greg Aimi in an August 26, 2004, research brief titled “Global Trade Maturing in Time to Support DDSN”. “Manufacturing industries are accelerating the use of lower-cost sourcing and offshore manufacturing capacity. Worldwide governments are consistently increasing security regulations especially as it pertains to international movement of goods. All of these combine to accelerate the importance of Global Trade Management for today’s business professional.”

The new opportunities and challenges created by the opening of trade lanes around the world are driving companies to explore new ways to leverage technology across the extended enterprise, and TradeBeam is committed to building a strong and sustainable business to serve this need,” said Graham R. F. Napier, president and CEO of TradeBeam. “We are very pleased to have the support of such a world-class organization as The Carlyle Group in that endeavor, along with the continued confidence and support of our existing investors.”

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