By the Dealflow Asia staff

SINGAPORE-BASED Firium Solutions (Asia-Pacific) Pte Ltd said it received US$8.5 million (S$14.8 million) in its second round of funding from UK-based VC, 3i Group, and from Singapore-based ITG (Internet Technology INTERNET SERVICES

FIRIUM

http://www.firium.com

Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia
FUNDING: $8.5M
ROUND: 2nd
CATEGORY: Demand-chain management Web-based business solutions
DESCRIPTION: Provides e-business consulting, systems integration, and software development.
LEAD INVESTOR: 3i
OTHER INVESTORS: Singapore mainboard-listed Internet Technology Group
THE HERRING TAKE: The future is looking rosy for Firium, a Singapore-headquartered firm that provides demand-chain consultancy and implementation services to Asia Pacific companies in financial services and retail and distribution sectors. Quickly following a $2 million investment from 3i a year ago, Firium has received another $8.5 million. The new funds will help finance its regional expansion into Thailand and the Philippines, through strategic acquisitions, by the end of 2001. They'll also go toward a recruitment drive in Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia. Founder, president, and CEO Jusuf Sjariffudin says the company's ability to attract new investment in a tight VC market is due to its experienced management team -- all of whom have "Big 5" consulting experience -- and their in-depth industry knowledge in its two target market sectors. Having a compound annual growth rate of over 140 percent since inception in 1997 must also have been a plus. The company, which until a recent rebranding was known as Jatis Solutions, counts among its customers Motorola, Prudential, ABN AMRO, and SingTel. Its strategic partners providing best-of-breed solutions include Oracle, Sun Microsystems, Onyx, BEA Systems, and Microsoft. --G.B.