Deutsche Post World Net takes majority stake in leading document and mail services provider Williams Lea

· Williams Lea: Leading international provider of document and mail-related services
· DHL Global Mail: Leading full-range service provider in worldwide mail logistics

Deutsche Post World Net will take a majority stake in Williams Lea, a business process outsourcing (BPO) provider specializing in document management and mail services. Headquartered in London, Great Britain, Williams Lea is a leading provider of value-added document and mail-related services, offering a wide range of products in the areas of print management, mailroom management, document management as well as direct marketing. As the number one service provider in the UK and Europe, Williams Lea has significantly strengthened its international presence through organic and acquisitive growth, especially in the USA.
With the acquisition of a majority stake in Williams Lea, Deutsche Post World Net strengthens not only the presence of its brand DHL Global Mail in foreign mail markets, but also builds upon the breadth of its global mail services. This strengthens the overall position of the Deutsche Post World Net Group as the leading one-stop-shop for the provision of express, logistics and mail services.
"Williams Lea creates a superb platform for taking advantage of the ever-increasing liberalization of international mail markets. And with one eye on the termination of the German exclusive license, the acquisition ensures the continued profitability of the mail business," said Dr. Hans-Dieter Petram, Member of the Deutsche Post World Net Board responsible for national and international mail.
Williams Lea's customers include major international corporations in the areas of investment banking, financial services, legal and professional services and retail, as well as companies from the automotive and pharmaceutical industries. The company, founded in 1820, has a long tradition of service excellence and employs 6,500 people worldwide, achieving revenues of EUR 650 million in 2005. Post completion, the company's experienced management team will remain in place and retain an equity stake going forward.
Tim Griffiths, Williams Lea's Chief Executive, commented, "We are delighted with the outcome of our recent negotiations and Deutsche Post World Net's decision to become our new principal investor. Their business is wholly complementary to ours and we are eager to draw on their extensive business experience as a major global organisation. We see considerable potential to leverage Deutsche Post World Net's world class mail and logistics capability in order to add more value to Williams Lea's proposition for new and existing clients."
Together with Williams Lea, Deutsche Post World Net will be even better positioned in the international Mail markets as well as in the area of value-added mail services and will become the leading full-range provider in international mail logistics. Deutsche Post World Net offers its global customers high quality mail solutions along the entire value chain: from direct-marketing consulting and printing, to sorting and franking, all the way to international transport and delivery.
In the cross-border mail business, Deutsche Post World Net has direct connections to more than 200 countries. The company also takes strategic advantage of the opportunities associated with the worldwide liberalisation of postal markets and is already represented with its brand DHL Global Mail in domestic mail markets such as the USA, the Netherlands, Great Britain, France and Spain.
The acquisition of Williams Lea is subject, especially, to regulatory approval and is expected to close in March 2006.