Villeroy & Boch Expands Strategic Alliance With Wirecard

ASCHHEIM, Germany, November 8, 2011 -

• Payment processing and credit card acceptance for all European eShops
• Ceramics producer benefits from single-source supply

Munich-based Wirecard AG recently started processing payments for the Mettlach-based ceramics manufacturer Villeroy & Boch in all of its eleven European eShops. When making payment, customers can choose between credit card, direct debit, invoice and advance payment. Wirecard started providing Villeroy & Boch with risk management services back in 2005.

Villeroy & Boch has a long-standing tradition. Now, the listed company has 24 production facilities world-wide. The Villeroy & Boch brand spans a highly diversified, end-to-end product range for bathrooms, tableware and tiles. The company is driving its on track internationalization on new, high-growth markets. At present, customers can buy the premium brand’s products online in eleven European countries.

“We have been placing our trust in Wirecard’s competence in customer risk management for several years. That is why it was easy to take the decision to place payment processing in this specialist’s hands,” commented Dr. Markus Warncke, Villeroy & Boch’s Treasurer.  ”The share of our revenues accounted for by foreign sales has increased by one third over the past 15 years. Our strategic alliance with Wirecard means that we are perfectly positioned for further international growth.”

The Wirecard Group is supporting the online retailer in its expansion into new markets with end-to-end services and more than 85 international payment and risk management methods.

Dunja Springer, Head of Sales Consumer Goods at Wirecard AG: “We are very pleased to be able to support the highly traditional German company Villeroy & Boch in its expansion. In order to meet our claim of being one of the leading providers in international eCommerce, we are expanding our offering for national payment methods around the world.”

Wirecard provides credit card, debit card and local payment acceptance via its Payment Page. Shop operators can put together their own selection of relevant payment solutions using modular building blocks. A special advantage: the group’s own Wirecard Bank means that revenues received from all types of payment are aggregated and paid out. This process optimization saves costs for the retailer.

About Villeroy & Boch:

Villeroy & Boch is headquartered in Mettlach/Germany and has 24 production facilities in 12 European countries and in Mexico and Thailand. It offers products for bathrooms and wellness, tableware and tiles, and is represented in 125 countries. The listed company, which has around 8,200 employees around the world, can look back on a company history spanning 260 years. The Villeroy & Boch group recorded revenues of EUR 714.2 million in fiscal year 2010.

Preferred shares of Villeroy & Boch (German Securities Code (WKN) 765723/ISIN DE0007657231) are listed in official trading on the Frankfurt/Main Stock Exchange (Prime Standard and Xetra) and are traded OTC at the stock exchanges in Berlin-Bremen, Düsseldorf, Hamburg, Munich and Stuttgart.

www.villeroy-boch.com

shop.villeroy-boch.com/de_de/

About Wirecard AG:

Wirecard AG is one of the leading international providers of electronic payment and risk management solutions. Worldwide, the Wirecard Group supports over 12,000 companies from various industry segments in their efforts to automate their payment processes and minimize cases of default. Wirecard Bank AG is a Principal Member of Visa, MasterCard and JCB and operates as a credit card acquirer in 69 countries around the world, involving over 100 transaction currencies and 18 payout currencies. Part of the Wirecard Group, Wirecard Bank provides innovative solutions in the fields of corporate banking, prepaid and co-branded cards, along with account products for both business and private customers. Wirecard AG is listed on the Frankfurt Securities Exchange (TecDAX, ISIN DE0007472060, WDI).

www.wirecard.com

www.wirecardbank.com

www.mywirecard.com

Wirecard Media Contact:
Wirecard AG
Iris Stöckl
Einsteinring 35
D-85609 Aschheim / Munich
Germany
Ph: +49(0)89-4424-1424
Fax: +49(0)89-4424-2424
e-mail: iris.stoeckl@wirecard.com
Internet: www.wirecard.com

Villeroy & Boch Media Contact:

Villeroy & Boch AG
Almut Hähner-Ural
Saaruferstrasse
D- 66693 Mettlach
Germany
Tel: +49(0)6864-81-13-97
Fax: +49(0)6864-81-26-92
e-mail: haehner-ural.almut@villeroy-boch.com
Internet: www.villeroy-boch.com

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