Country for PR: United States
Contributor: PR Newswire New York
Monday, October 21 2019 - 13:02
AsiaNet
Lightspeed POS Inc. Announces the Acquisition of Kounta
MONTREAL, Oct. 21, 2019 /PRNewswire-AsiaNet/ --

-- Lightspeed bolsters presence in Asia-Pacific market as another world-class
   team joins the fold

Lightspeed POS Inc. (TSX: LSPD), a leading omnichannel point of sale platform 
for over 51,000 customer locations(1) worldwide, today announced that it has 
entered into an agreement to acquire Australia-based Kounta Holdings Pty Ltd, a 
rapidly growing, cloud-based POS solutions provider to small and medium-sized 
businesses operating within the hospitality industry. 

Combining with Kounta will strengthen Lightspeed's resources to provide even 
greater customer experiences as it expands into the Asia-Pacific region, while 
tapping the talent and expertise needed to accelerate Lightspeed's mission of 
becoming the leading global POS platform for small and medium-sized businesses, 
the backbone of vibrant cities and communities throughout the world. 

The purchase bolsters Lightspeed's footprint across Australia and New Zealand 
by more than 7,000 customer locations(1), including leading small and 
medium-sized brands across cafes, bars, full service restaurants, high-end 
boutique hotels, and more. 

"Kounta's impressive track record is thanks to its team, and we are excited to 
welcome them into the Lightspeed family," said Dax Dasilva, Founder and CEO of 
Lightspeed. "When smart minds collaborate, our merchants are the main 
beneficiaries of the resulting innovation, ultimately enabling SMBs around the 
world to reach their full potential through our technology."

"Joining Lightspeed, a recognized global leader, is a testament to our hard 
work and also a shared passion for empowering independent businesses," said 
Nick Cloete, Founder and CEO of Kounta. "We are immensely proud to partner with 
a company so well aligned on purpose, culture and technology."

DETAILS OF TRANSACTION 

Founded in 2012, Kounta generated revenue of approximately USD $6.4 million(2) 
in their fiscal year ended June 30, 2019.  Lightspeed will acquire all of the 
outstanding shares of Kounta for approximately US$35.3 million(3) in cash on 
closing and the issuance of 306,290 subordinate voting shares in the capital of 
Lightspeed, at a value of US$25.05(4) per share, subject to post-closing 
working capital adjustment. An additional US$7.5 million(3) in deferred cash 
consideration along with the issuance of 299,692 subordinate voting shares in 
the capital of Lightspeed, at a value of US$25.05(4) per share, is payable to 
certain Kounta employees through October 2021, in each case if certain 
milestones, including the continued employment of those employees, are achieved 
by June 2020 and October 2021. An additional amount of US$3.4 million(3) tied 
to a marketing alliance agreement is payable to one selling shareholder in 
three annual installments beginning on closing. The deal is expected to close 
before the end of the current month, subject to customary closing conditions. 

Additional details regarding this transaction will be communicated during 
Lightspeed's conference call to discuss second quarter 2020 results, scheduled 
for November 7th, 2019. 

ABOUT KOUNTA HOLDINGS PTY LTD

Kounta is an Australian technology company with a mission to make it easy to 
cost-effectively allow merchants to better run, connect and grow their 
businesses through a simple yet powerful point of sale experience. A leader in 
high-performance device-agnostic omnichannel POS solutions and business 
management systems for the restaurant and hospitality industries, Kounta serves 
more than 7,000 customer locations(1) primarily across Australia and New 
Zealand. 

ABOUT LIGHTSPEED POS INC. 

Lightspeed (TSX: LSPD) is a cloud-based commerce platform powering small and 
medium-sized businesses in approximately 100 countries around the world. With 
smart, scalable, and dependable point of sale systems, it's an all-in-one 
solution that helps restaurants and retailers sell across channels, manage 
operations, engage with consumers, accept payments, and grow their business. 
Headquartered in Montréal, Canada, Lightspeed is trusted by favourite local 
businesses, where the community goes to shop and dine. Lightspeed has grown to 
over 800 employees, with offices in Canada, USA, Europe, and Australia. 

FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS 

This press release may include forward-looking information and forward-looking 
statements within the meaning of applicable securities laws ("forward-looking 
statements"). Forward-looking statements are statements that are predictive in 
nature, depend upon or refer to future events or conditions and are identified 
by words such as "will", "expects", "anticipates", "intends", "plans", 
"believes", "estimates" or similar expressions concerning matters that are not 
historical facts. Certain statements made in this press release are 
forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, statements relating 
to benefits expected to result from the acquisition of Kounta by Lightspeed, 
including our plans for expansion in the APAC region, our business outlook, 
objectives, plans and strategic priorities, and other statements that are not 
historical facts. Such statements are based on current expectations of 
Lightspeed's management and inherently involve numerous risks and 
uncertainties, known and unknown, including economic factors. A number of 
risks, uncertainties and other factors may cause actual results to differ 
materially from the forward-looking statements contained in this news release. 
This news release should be read in conjunction with the risk factors set out 
in the most recent Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition 
and Results of Operations and under "Risk Factors" in our most recent Annual 
Information Form, both of which are available under our profile on SEDAR at 
www.sedar.com. Readers are cautioned to consider these and other factors 
carefully when making decisions with respect to the Lightspeed and not to place 
undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Forward- looking statements 
contained in this press release are not guarantees of future performance and, 
while forward-looking statements are based on certain assumptions that 
Lightspeed considers reasonable, actual events and results could differ 
materially from those expressed or implied by forward-looking statements made 
by the Lightspeed.  Except as may be expressly required by applicable law, 
Lightspeed does not undertake any obligation to update publicly or revise any 
such forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future 
events or otherwise. Forward-looking statements are provided herein for the 
purpose of giving information about benefits expected to result from the 
acquisition of Kounta by Lightspeed, including our plans for expansion in the 
APAC region. Readers are cautioned that such information may not be appropriate 
for other purposes.

There can be no assurance that the benefits expected to result from the 
acquisition of Kounta, including our plans for expansion in the APAC region, 
will be realized. The market penetration in the APAC could materially differ 
from current expectations.

For more information, please visit: www.lightspeedhq.com

On social media: Linkedin ( 
https://c212.net/c/link/?t=0&l=en&o=2616397-1&h=1582770833&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.linkedin.com%2Fcompany%2Flightspeed-hq%2F&a=%C2%A0Linkedin 
), Facebook ( 
https://c212.net/c/link/?t=0&l=en&o=2616397-1&h=188641658&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FLightspeedHQ&a=%C2%A0Facebook 
), Instagram ( 
https://c212.net/c/link/?t=0&l=en&o=2616397-1&h=1889006949&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.instagram.com%2Flightspeedhq%2F&a=%C2%A0Instagram 
) , YouTube ( 
https://c212.net/c/link/?t=0&l=en&o=2616397-1&h=1349499953&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fuser%2Flightspeedretail&a=%C2%A0YouTube 
), and Twitter ( 
https://c212.net/c/link/?t=0&l=en&o=2616397-1&h=427027216&u=https%3A%2F%2Ftwitter.com%2FLightspeedHQ&a=%C2%A0Twitter 
) 


(1) Non-IFRS measure. "Customer Location" means a billing customer location for 
which the term of services have not ended, or with which we are negotiating a 
renewal contract. A single unique customer can have multiple Customer Locations 
including physical and eCommerce sites. 
(2)  Unaudited. Determined in accordance with IFRS.
(3) Converted into U.S. dollars using an exchange rate of 0.6831, being the 
daily rate of exchange posted by the Reserve Bank of Australia for conversion 
of Australian dollars into U.S. dollars on October 18, 2019.
(4)  Based on the 10-day volume-weighted average price of Lightspeed's 
subordinate voting shares on the Toronto Stock Exchange immediately prior to 
the date hereof converted into U.S. dollars using an exchange rate of 0.7615, 
being the daily rate of exchange posted by the Bank of Canada for conversion of 
Canadian dollars into U.S. dollars on October 18, 2019. 
 
Media Contact (North America): Victoria Baker | NKPR | Victoriab@nkpr.net | +1 
416.365.3630 x228; Media Contact (Australia) : Jessica Power | Kounta | 
jessicap@kounta.com; Investor Contact: Chris Mammone | The Blueshirt Group 
|investorrelations@lightspeedhq.com; Source: Brandon Nussey l Chief Financial 
Officer l Lightspeed 

SOURCE: Lightspeed POS Inc.