News

Past Five Years

·         August 2010 - Vanguard Atlantic Ltd. and other investors sold their shares in Axolotl to Ingenix, a wholly-owned subsidiary of United Health Group.

·         October 2008 - Vanguard Atlantic Ltd. and other investors provided Packaged Business Solutions International with $250,000 in Series B bridge financing.

·         February 2008 - Vanguard Atlantic Ltd. and other investors provided Packaged Business Solutions International with $750,000 in Series A preferred financing.

·         June 2006 - Alara sold $3,835,000 of new series AA shares to Vanguard Atlantic Ltd. and Asset Management Partners.  The new funds were to be used to finance completion of the company's computed radiology (CR) product.

·         March 2006 - Axolotl launched a share repurchase offer where holders could exchange their preferred and common stock for a new series or each or for cash.  Vanguard Atlantic chose to retain its shares and offered to purchase more.  The result was a complete restructuring iwhich Vanguard Atlantic became the lead and majority shareholder.

·         November 2005 - Vanguard Atlantic Ltd. and Asset Management Company have provided Alara with an additional $1.75 million bridge line of credit.  These funds will be used roll-out Alara's CRystalView family of desktop Computed Radiography (CR) products that were announced and demonstrated at the November 2005 RSNA show in Chicago.

·         April, 2005 - Vanguard Atlantic Ltd. and Asset Management Company (http://www.assetman.com) have participated in a $1.75 million additional investment in Alara, Inc.  The new funds will be used to complete development of, and launch, Alara's CRystalView family of desktop Computed Radiography (CR) products for general radiography applications.

·         September 12, 2003 - Ascential Software Corporation has completed the acquisition of Mercator Software, Inc., creating what it says is the largest independent provider of enterprise data integration software solutions. "The acquisition of Mercator further expands Ascential's Enterprise Data Integration Suite and creates the industry's first and most comprehensive data integration product set for transactional, operational and analytical requirements, regardless of data volumes or latency. This uniquely enables our customers to apply data integration solutions pervasively throughout the enterprise," said Peter Gyenes, Chairman and CEO of Ascential Software. "All operations of Mercator will be immediately integrated within Ascential's operations," Gyenes said.Vanguard Atlantic Ltd. was a founding investor in Mercator, and Vanguard Atlantic's President, Ernest E. "Lee" Keet served on its board of directors from 1985 through 2003.

·         September 5, 2003 - Vanguard Atlantic Ltd. increased its investment in  Alara, Inc. to $6 million by leading  a Series G preferred round of financing which will assist the company in the launch of its imminent Computerized Radiology (CR) product, CrystalView.  CrystalView, a low-cost desktop digital CR product aimed at decentralized processing of radiographic images using standard xRay sources with replacement "film" canisters that are actually reusable storage phosphor screens, will be launched at the RSNA radiology show in Chicago at the end of November.

·         September 3, 2002 - Richland Ventures, Tudor Investments, and Vanguard Atlantic Ltd. have provided Axolotl with bridge funding in the form of $1 million of convertible debt.  These funds are believed to be sufficient working capital to allow Axolotl to sustain cash-positive operations.

·         May 1, 2002 -  Alara Inc. has acquired the assets of Phormax, including its multi-head phosphor scanner which Alara will manufacturer and commercialize for general release in 2003. 

·         January 31, 2002 - The EDventure Venture Fund has closed at the end of its contractual life.  Vanguard Atlantic Ltd. was the fund's largest limited partner and acted as co-general manager with Managing Director, Esther Dyson.  Shares of two properties remaining in the fund have been distributed to the partners.  Vanguard Atlantic now is directly responsible for its shares in New World Publishing, parent of the Prague and Budapest Business Journals.

·         August 1, 2001 - Vanguard Atlantic Ltd.  reported the failure of its efforts, along with McLean Watson Capital, to refinance V2Commerce Corp. after the rejection of their offer by the company's largest common holders.  As a result of this rejection and in the absence of any other offers the V2Commerce board voted to halt all operations and liquidate all assets effective immediately.  The company's Outrigger service will end operations on August 3, 2001 after notice to all customers.  Vanguard Atlantic and McLean Watson participated in the B round funding of V2Commerce in August, 2000. Vanguard's Lee Keet stated "We regret having the first write-down in Vanguard's seventeen-year history, especially since we thought V2C had such an interesting future.  In this difficult financing climate we became the rescuers of last resort, but the price we believed to be equitable was rejected by the common holders in what can only be described as a totally self-destructive action, especially given the lack of any alternative sources of funds and the certainty of an immediate cessation of operations.  On behalf of the other shareholders, partners, suppliers and especially the hard-working employees of V2Commerce we deeply regret their irrational action."

·         July 31, 2001 - Technology Help Becomes Cinemetrix; Expands Dial-Up & Broadband-Compatible Web-Based Animated Presentations For Business Impact.  Completes Series B Funding From Vanguard Atlantic.  See Press Release 

·         July 25, 2001 - Axolotl Corp., a leading provider of high-speed communication solutions and Web-based applications that connect physicians to the entire healthcare continuum, today closed $17.7 million in Series D financing. Led by Tudor Private Equity Fund, L.P., this financing also included Vanguard Atlantic, Ltd., Richland Ventures, L.P., and Gilat Satellite Networks Ltd. (Nasdaq:GILTF). As a result of strong interest from new investors Axolotl is maintaining a 120-day window to consider additional participation.  "The company will continue to deploy Web-based applications that automate physician practices, broadband communication solutions for high-speed Internet connectivity, and will further grow the AccentHealth Waiting Room Network," said Jerry Morrison, President and CEO of Axolotl Corp. "The company is on target to be EBITDA positive in this third quarter of 2001," continued Morrison.  "Axolotl Corp. is an exciting private investment for Tudor," said Rick Ganong, Partner, Tudor Venture Group. "They have a sustainable technology advantage, a strong customer base, a clear path to profitability and a seasoned management team to execute on the company's business plan. We believe they have a very strong position in a large, growing market."  "Axolotl continues to be an important partner for Gilat Satellite Networks Ltd.," said Nick Supron, President and CEO, Spacenet Inc., Gilat's US subsidiary. "This round of funding will serve to strengthen our existing relationship and is expected to be used in part to increase the deployment of our VSAT-based communication solutions in the healthcare industry."

·         November 17, 2000 - Vanguard Atlantic Ltd. announced that it was acquiring additional shares in Mercator Software (MCTR) in the public markets.  

·         August 3, 2000 - Vanguard Atlantic Ltd. and McLean Watson Capital have provided V2Commerce with a second round of financing totaling $3.9 million.  V2Commerce's Boad of Directors has been expanded to include Stanley Chan from McLean Watson, Fred Applegate, and Hugh Teitjen.  

·         July 25, 2000 [From VentureWire] RESTON, Va. -- Engenia Software, which develops a customized, XML-based computer "dashboard", said it raised $22.5 million in its third round of venture funding. New investor Dominion Ventures led the round, which included other new investors Cooley Godward, Intel Capital, SpaceVest, Thomson Corp., Topaz Investors, and Winfield Capital. Previous investors Aurora Funds, Novak Biddle Venture Partners, St. Paul Venture Capital, and Vanguard Atlantic also funded the round, along with individual investors Frank Bonsal, a founding partner of New Enterprise Associates, and Gideon Gartner, Giga Information Group chairman. The company named Dominion Ventures general partner Randy Werner and SpaceVest managing director Roger Widing to its board of directors.  The company will use the funding to further develop its proprietary technology and for sales and marketing. Engenia Software's product enables collaboration between multiple projects, enabling Web data, documents, personnel, and resources to be integrated and managed.

·          May 19, 2000 - Vanguard Atlantic Ltd. has provided an initial seed round of funding to TechnologyHelp, Inc. THI creates custom animation for E-commerce sites to dramatically improve visitor conversion rates.  THI's short, animated reports instruct a user about a particular Web site feature or process, employing the best of TV production skills and Web multimedia technologies to create a true "Wow!" experience.  These sites can capture new visitors who might otherwise be intimidated navigating an unfamiliar site.  Improving site conversion rates is a powerful economic benefit, particularly using THI's low-risk payment model: fees based on usage (i.e., number of visitors using the animation), increases in conversion rates, and qualified lead referrals.   Ernest E. Keet has joined the TechnologyHelp board of directors.

·         April 25, 2000 -  Alara, Inc. has received $5 million in financing from Vanguard Atlantic Ltd.  The proceeds will be used to commence marketing of Alara's revolutionary MetriScan� bone mineral density product when its FDA clearance is received.  MetriScan allows primary care Physicians to offer bone density testing in their offices.  Alara also designed and now manufactures the DenOptix� Dental Radiography System, which is distributed by the GENDEX division of Dentsply International.  MetriScan performs digital radiographic absorptiometry (RA) to estimate relative phalangeal bone density of the three middle fingers.  A study that followed 3481 women for up to sixteen years concluded that bone density of the phalanges by RA predicts hip fractures due to osteoporosis. Based on this study, Medicare and most private insurers cover the use of MetriScan for the estimated 28 million Americans at risk for osteoporosis."  The scan itself takes less than one second, and requires less than fifteen seconds of patient and operator time.  MetriScan will be placed in the Physicians office on a shared-revenue model that will require no capital investment from the medical practice.  Ernest E. Keet has joined the Alara board of directors. 

·         April 25, 2000 - Soquel, Ca, May 1, 2000 -- jCan Corporation has announced that it has received $2.1 million in venture funding from Vanguard Atlantic Ltd.  Can will use the funds to complete development of Handheld Theater(TM), jCan's add-on device for PalmOS(TM) devices.  Handheld Theater will be the first product in a family of personal devices for mobile professionals.  Handheld Theater will allow Palm(TM) and HandSpring(TM) users to give professional presentations, complete with sound, using files downloaded from their desktop computer. jCan expects to secure a larger second round to fund full production and roll-out of Handheld Theater later this year. jCan is a privately held company located in Santa Cruz county on the central coast of California.