It wasn’t too long ago that the Australian Trade Commission shut down its office in Atlanta, but two company relocations announced this week proved that interest in the South from Down Under remains strong.
Founded in 2008 with operations around the world, Australian fintech firm VIX Verify, which helps banks and payment processors confirm consumers’ identities digitally, has chosen Atlanta for its Americas headquarters.
The firm cited the city’s cluster of more than 90 financial technology firms involved in payment processing, credit reporting and other sectors of the industry. Executives were also impressed by the city’s “collaborative community, talent, economic vibrancy and ‘let’s do it’ attitude,” VIX Verify General Manager Marco Piovesan said in a news release.
The company hinted that an innovation center could be in the city’s future, as its growth plans call for moves beyond its existing centers back home and in South Africa. Atlanta has attracted a variety of innovation centers in recent months, especially to the area around Tech Square in Midtown.
Perhaps less flashy but equally important was the revelation that Australian concrete additives manufacturer EdenCrete Industries Inc. is set to build a $67 million plant in Augusta, Ga. Its main product, EdenCrete, is approved by the Georgia Department of Transportation as a concrete repair mix, as it helps strengthen concrete in roads and bridges.
It was attracted by the pro-business environment and transport access to the domestic and export markets, along with the “warmth of its people, the quality of its workforce and the attractive standard of living and opportunities that it offers our future employees,” Eden Energy Chairman Greg Solomon said in a release.
Apparently, the affection goes both ways. Atlanta’s Equifax Inc. in February purchased credit information provider Veda Group Ltd. in February for $1.9 billion. Genuine Parts Co. has had a longstanding and successful relationship with the country, buying multiple companies there. And Global Payments Inc., an Atlanta-based payment processing giant, is spent AU$305 million, about $234.7 million, to buy Ezidebit, which focuses on recurring payments.
In a Habif, Arogeti & Wynne survey of Georgia exporters conducted earlier this year with the help of Global Atlanta, Australia ranked highly among the potential new markets, with more than a quarter of respondents saying they would pursue sales there.