Company Secures $10M Investment and Announces New Shareholders and CEO

Axora, the global innovation platform and marketplace for leading digital 
solutions for industrial companies, is set to expand after closing over $10 
million in funding from private placements. The latest round of investment 
welcomes new minority shareholders Traxys, the leading global commodity 
supplier and Société Générale. A group of private investors, including ABCP 
fund and the Boston Consulting Group provided further financing. This will 
enable Axora to further develop its innovative platform and grow its portfolio 
of the latest and most relevant technology solutions.

"We estimate that approximately $200 billion in Intellectual Property is 
duplicated every year across industrial companies," said Ajay Chowdhury, 
Managing Director and Partner, BCG Digital Ventures. "Many companies across 
different sectors are looking to solve the same or similar problems but 
unfortunately there's a lack of transparency across industries which results in 
wasted investment as companies develop technology solutions which have already 
been built elsewhere."

In addition to its new shareholders, Axora also welcomes Ritz Steytler as CEO, 
following an extensive search process. Ritz has more than 27 years' experience 
in the technology-led transformation and growth of multinational businesses. He 
spent the first part of his career as a consultant and systems integrator with 
Accenture and IBM, delivering transformation programmes for some of the biggest 
names in retail, telecommunications and financial services. Later, he was CEO 
and board director of the omni-channel payment processor PXP up to its 
acquisition by Kalixa in May 2014, and subsequently COO and board director of 
Kalixa until October 2015. Before joining Axora, he was COO of Featurespace, 
the world leader in adaptive behavioral analytics and AI-based fraud detection. 

"This is an exciting time to be joining Axora as CEO. The need for companies to 
be digital, safer, sustainable and efficient has never been greater," said Ritz 
Steytler. "Through its innovative digital solutions, Axora is uniquely placed 
to help industrial companies to transform and thrive. This new investment not 
only validates our offering but ensures that we continue to identify and 
provide digital solutions that solve many of the pain points suffered by 
businesses in industry today. I'm looking forward to leading Axora through the 
next phase of its development." 

Together with its expert industry insights, Axora hosts more than 100 
innovative solutions from sector leaders to start-ups, universities, and 
consultancies. Examples include machine vision technology that identifies 
mineral ore contaminants three times faster than the human eye, and predictive 
modelling for oil rigs which uses built-in sensors and AI to maximise 
production. Axora's proven digital solutions help to reduce wasted investment, 
avoid duplication and accelerate business growth.

Axora was developed by a team of industry experts, engineers and entrepreneurs 
including the Boston Consulting Group. It is currently focusing on the Oil and 
Gas and Mining and Metals sectors and will soon expand into other sectors. 

About Axora:

Axora is the new cross-industry innovation platform and marketplace for digital 
solutions.  We help leading global organisations discover best-in-class 
innovation to unlock transformation and deliver business value. Led by a team 
of industry experts, and backed by well-known global investors, we exist to 
deliver on the potential of digital innovation. Enabled by our industry leading 
web platform, we showcase the latest expert insight and industry perspectives 
on technology, combined with leading edge solutions that solve today's industry 
challenges.

SOURCE: Axora