Cartagena Capital advises French Coronis on its sale to Elster Group

Munich/Paris - June 25, 2007

Cartagena Capital, the international technology corporate finance firm, acted as exclusive financial advisor to the shareholders of Coronis Systems on its sale to the Luxembourg-based Elster Group. Coronis Systems is a leading developer of ultra-low-power wireless solutions. Elster Group, the world's largest metering company and supplier of high quality integrated metering and utilization solutions has acquired Coronis Systems from its management and a group of venture capital shareholders led by Banexi Ventures and AXA Private Equity in order to expand further into the AMI (Advanced Metering Infrastructure) solutions market.

Coronis Systems designs and develops ultra-low-power long-range wireless solutions and platforms for value-added resellers (VARs), original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), and integrators. Since its inception in 2000, Coronis Systems has become the global leader in ultra-low-power consumption wireless communication technology. With more than 1.2 million devices deployed in small, medium, and large-scale wireless mesh networks around the world, Wavenis technology addresses the specific characteristics and needs of today's smart sensor networks.

The Elster Group's acquisition of Coronis Systems strengthens its portfolio of standards-based AMI solutions for utilities. As part of the Elster Group, Coronis Systems will continue to supply and support its current customer base and seek to expand the market and standardization for Wavenis-enabled platforms. Coronis Systems will also reinforce its line of transversal ultra-low-power wireless platforms and solutions, leveraging the Elster Group's leading market position.

Anne-Valérie Bach, Partner of Banexi Ventures, commented: "Cartagena Capital did a fantastic job for us when advising on the sale of Coronis Systems. Their professional attitude ensured a successful outcome for all shareholders", while Jean-Marc Fiamma of AXA Private Equity added: "Their understanding of both the buyer's and sellers' position and their knowledge of the industry really helped us complete this sale".

Laurent Maleysson, Coronis Systems' Co-Founder and General Manager pointed out: "We are very satisfied with Cartagena's services and can recommend them highly to other entrepreneurs. We would work again with Cartagena any time!"

For further information contact Olivier Perraudin.