Polaris enters cloud computing space through strategic investment in IdenTrust

Polaris Software Lab Limited yesterday  said it had acquired an85-per cent stake in identity solutions provider IdenTrust for $20 million. The  transaction includes a fresh issue of shares for $5 million to polaris, Polaris chairman and CEO Arun Jain said.

IdenTrust Inc was founded in 1999 by a group of financial institutions that included Citigroup, Bank of America, Chase, Barclays, HSBC, and Deutsche. As the only bank-developed identity authentication system, IdenTrust provides a unique legally and technologically interoperable environment for authenticating and using identities worldwide.

It provides applications that use electronic identities to establish contracts, grant authority, support secure encrypted data and information storage and secure online interactions/transactions.
 
IdenTrust shareholders include 20 banks, and the company brings with it an existing customer base of 10 of the world's largest banks; a portfolio of patents, and the associated intellectual property and expertise around identity, authentication, encryption, and electronic signatures on a global basis; and strong operational and hosting capabilities, led by a solid management team.

With the investment Polaris has taken the first step in becoming a "one-stop shop for all financial-technology needs," Jain said in a press release

He said  ''With increasing dependency on the Internet, security solutions that incorporate identity management are a key element in any cloud offering. We believe that IdenTrust, being a proven provider of bank-grade identity authentication in 175 countries, will bring in the required expertise in this area allowing us to create more value for our clients by providing the most secure Financial Infrastructure solutions. We are excited about getting into a new area with this significant investment that shows our long term commitment to being a one-stop shop for all FinTech needs.''

For the financial year ended 31 December, IdenTrust reported revenue of about $9 million. According to it is expected to start making a profit in 2012, Mr. Jain said.
For the quarter ended 31December Polaris posted a net profit of Rs513 million  and revenue of Rs3.6 billion.