EQS-News: The Payments Group Holding - the announced AI Company Building is taking shape and gaining momentum

+++ Press release +++

The Payments Group Holding - the announced AI Company Building is taking shape and gaining momentum
 

• Joint venture with established AI experts for the serial development of AI products and spin-offs.
• Change of name of the holding company of the JV to Softmax AI GmbH, 25% stake
• Market launch of the first products is imminent

Frankfurt/Main, 30 April 2025 – German AI Projects GmbH, a subsidiary of The Payments Group Holding (PGH), a holding company based in Frankfurt am Main that was founded in 2012 and renamed in August 2024, has changed its name to Softmax AI GmbH and relocated its headquarters to Landshut near Munich. PGH now holds a stake of 25% plus one share in Softmax AI. Dr. Denise Vandeweijer, information system scientist, founder of Verdas Ventures and former Head of AI at BMW, has been appointed as a further Managing Director of Softmax AI. Verdas Ventures is an AI company in the Munich area, holds 40% of Softmax AI and is managed by her and co-founder Dr. Allison Fisher, a leader in AI ethics and AI capacity building, with over 20 years of experience in leadership and learning design. They have set themselves the goal of creating a better future with the help of AI. Softmax AI is creating a company builder focused on artificial intelligence.

The opportunistic joint venture is based on the pioneering open source model of DeepSeek and similar AI models and comprises the fast-paced series development of several related AI apps for different application areas, based on common programming technology such as text-to-speech engines. With low capex requirements, the project offers profitability prospects for the AI products developed and significant potential for capital gains of the emerging startups.

Two applications developed by Softmax AI are already close to market launch: a voice application for nursing homes and their residents and a computer vision-based tool for assessing and documenting the condition of building components.  Both applications are expected to generate significant revenues at low operating costs. Further promising application projects and potential spin-offs are already in the pipeline.

About The Payments Group Holding

The Payments Group Holding (PGH) is a holding company and venture capital provider based in Frankfurt am Main founded in 2012 and renamed in August 2024.

In August 2024, PGH signed a share purchase agreement for the acquisition of four PayTech companies, which is expected to close in summer 2025 subject to certain conditions precedent. After closing of the transaction, PGH will form a group of four operating PayTech companies:

Funanga AG, Campamocha Ltd with its 100%-owned subsidiaries TBWS Ltd and Calida Financial Ltd as well as Surfer Rosa Ltd form a fast-growing, vertically integrated e-Money PayTech group of companies - The Payments Group (TPG). TPG provides proprietary closed and open (branded and white-labelled) prepaid payment services to hundreds of online merchants worldwide. The synergy between these companies positions TPG as the future market leader in embedded financial products and prepaid solutions. Calida Financial Ltd. is the regulated company within TPG, having received an e-money license from the Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA) in August 2024. This license entitles Calida Financial Ltd. to offer innovative e-money services and products across Europe.

TPG employs over 50 people and operates globally. TPG's customers make use of more than 550,000 POS cash payment points and the global online prepaid card network to process cash and cashless online payments.

Furthermore, PGH operates an AI-focused company builder called 'Softmax AI' together with AI experts via its future 25% stake in German AI Projects GmbH. In addition, The Payments Group Holding holds from its history as a leading German venture capital provider under the German Startups Group brand a heritage VC-portfolio of minority stakes in partly promising German startups via its wholly owned subsidiary German Startups Group VC GmbH.

For more information about The Payments Group Holding, please visit www.tpgholding.com.

Investor Relations Contact
Rosenberg Strategic Communications
Dirk Schmitt
d.schmitt@rosenbergsc.com
+49 170 302 8833