The revenue is almost exclusively to be attributed to the business area Services (CHF 7.5m), in which GFT Switzerland generated a significantly positive EBT. The implementation of the first nationwide e-government solution in Switzerland in the tax area contributed decisively to this. Commissioned by the cantons and of the federal government, GFT developed a uniform platform to control securities directories and for tax assessment of non-listed companies limited by shares in Switzerland, the so-called securities directory control (WVK=Wertschriftenverzeichnis-Kontrolle). Furthermore, it was possible to launch the realisation of a web application for the year-end prices published online and tax-relevant revenues of securities listed in Switzerland for the Swiss Federal Tax Office (ESTV). The new pricelist from ESTV will be made available to the public starting in May 2008. Furthermore, cooperation with the TEMENOS Group, a provider of software solutions for core bank processes, in the implementation of a new IT platform for a large internationally active bank is proceeding successfully.

Market entry in Switzerland was successful in the business area Resourcing. Since the GFT Group is already active in Germany and France in this business field, it expanded its activities to Switzerland and the United Kingdom in 2007. The Swiss Resourcing team was now able to intensify cooperation with two companies: on the one hand with LGT Financial Services, and on the other with ABB Switzerland, a leading company in energy and automation technology.

The e-mail archiving solution inboxx, the development of which was decisively driven in the business area Software, is encountering great interest in Switzerland as well. The software solution has been successfully implemented at the Nidwaldner cantonal bank.

Hansjörg Widmer, Managing Director of GFT Technologies (Switzerland) AG, continues to expect a constant increase in revenue for financial year 2008. To this end, the Swiss branch of GFT Technologies AG in the business field Services intends to concentrate on the banking, insurance and public administration sectors as a system integrator. “Given the large demand for qualified IT specialists, we are convinced that we will continue to experience strong growth in the business field Resourcing. In addition to organic growth, we intend to further solidify our positioning through strategic acquisitions both in Services and also in Resourcing,” according to Hansjörg Widmer.

At € 247.1m (CHF 405.2m), the overall revenues were up by 42 per cent compared with the previous year. The forecast, which was increased to € 230m (CHF 377m) during the course of the year, was thus exceeded once again. Earnings before taxes (EBT) rose correspondingly: the GFT group generated € 12.4m (CHF 20.3m), 85 per cent more than in 2006. As expected, the result margin was at around five per cent. At the end of the previous year, it was at 3.8 per cent.

At € 140.4m (CHF 230.3m), the Resourcing business area generated the highest revenue. This further increased the business area’s share in the overall revenue, now at around 57 per cent (previous year: 49 per cent). In 2007, GFT expanded its activities in this business area to include its locations in London and Zurich. The rising shortage of skilled manpower in the IT market, as well as the continuing trend to outsource IT projects to freelance specialists, means that the market environment continues to grow dynamically in this segment.

In the Services business area too, the GFT Group experienced significant growth in 2007: up by 22 per cent to € 100.8m (CHF 165.3m). The determining factor was the development of business with existing clients in the financial sector. The inclusion in the American FinTech 100 Ranking confirmed the company’s leading position among IT service providers in the financial services sector. GFT ranked 57 worldwide among the one hundred best IT service providers in this sector. Due to the tense situation in the financial services industry and the capital markets, the fourth quarter of 2007 saw a slight decline in investments in new projects.

Revenues in the Software business area fell short of expectations at € 5.9m (CHF 9.7m), a reorientation towards the area of email archiving has been undertaken. “Our archiving solution, inboxx, is among the best technology solutions worldwide. With this integrative archiving architecture we are addressing a market which is worth billions and opening up extraordinary growth opportunities. inboxx offers the potential to be blockbuster in this market. We will strengthen and develop our position in Europe through significant sales and marketing investments” Ulrich Dietz explains.

On 31 December 2007, the GFT Group had a total of 1,087 members of staff – ten more than on 30 September 2007 and 30 more than in the previous year. 72 per cent of employees work outside Germany.
The GFT Group has set themselves ambitious goals. They are hoping to achieve the target for 2011, of € 350m (CHF 574m) in revenue, at least one year early. Further international expansion is also planned.