GHL Systems Bhd, a leading payment services enabler that ventured overseas slightly more than a year ago, expects its international business to account for half of the company's total revenue by 2009.
Managing director Tay Beng Lock said that with Malaysia as a relatively small market for its payment services and products, the company has turned its attention to Thailand, the Philippines and China.
"What we are doing is to replicate the successful technology in Malaysia and bring it to other countries," he said at a media conference after the company's listing transfer from Mesdaq to the main board of Bursa Malaysia in Kuala Lumpur yesterday.
Other markets where GHL already has a presence include Bangladesh, Brunei, Indonesia, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Taiwan.
Tay said the Chinese Government envisages that some three million payment terminals are needed by 2008.
"We are looking at setting up 30,000 terminals. If we can secure 10 per cent of the three million terminals, that is already good enough.
"In Thailand, we are looking at completing about 6,000 terminals by next year. Last year we completed 4,500 terminals," he said.
On the company's listing transfer, Tay said one of the reasons for it is to increase liquidity and expand its overseas business.
"Within the investment community, such as trust funds, some of them have rules where they cannot invest in Mesdaq-listed companies," he said.
Tay said the main board listing will raise the company's profile in the international business and investing community.
"This status adequately reflects our current scale of operations as one of the leading integrated payment solutions providers in Asia Pacific," he said.
On research and development, Tay said the company spent between RM3 million and RM5 million a year, particularly on development, in the last four years.
This accounted for about 5 per cent of its revenue.
GHL Systems is an end-to-end payment services enabler in Asia Pacific that deploys payment infrastructure, services and technology.
Its portfolio of payment solutions includes transaction routers and concentrators, terminal line encryption, technologies, loyalty and online payment solutions, smartcard technologies, secure electronic draft capture networks and terminals to consulting services.
Listed on Mesdaq in April 2003, GHL Systems had fulfilled the requirements to transfer its shares to the main board after achieving more than RM30 million in accumulated net profit for the past five years, and having a share capital of RM60 million.
GHL is the second Mesdaq company to transfer directly to the main board, after Symphony House Bhd.
