QINO Flagship Racing Ahead: Pankl acquires Northbridge Motorsport

BAAR, SWITZERLAND, 17 April 2008 - Pankl Racing Systems AG (Reuters: PARS.VI), a portfolio company of QINO Flagship AG (Reuters: QINO.BN), announces the strategic acquisition of Northbridge Motorsport.

Pankl Racing Systems (“Pankl”) has acquired 100% of UK-based specialist bolts manufacturer Northbridge Motorsport, suppliers to motor sports such as F1 and WRC, in a deal worth EUR 2m.

Pankl is a global niche player and technology leader in the development and production of engine and drivetrain components to the motor racing and aerospace industries. Pankl employs more than 800 people at locations in Austria, UK, USA, Slovakia and Japan. Its supersports cars customers include Bugatti, Ferrari and Porsche.

QINO Flagship has taken a hands-on role in the successful restructuring and development of Pankl since first investing in 2004. This commitment is reflected in Pankl’s results: for year ending September 2007, Pankl achieved record revenues and EBIT of EUR 100.1m and EUR 10.1m respectively.

QINO Flagship chairman Daniel Marty commented, “This takeover represents another logical step in Pankl’s motor sport growth strategy, strengthening its position as a complete systems supplier.

“Pankl’s other business areas are also developing successfully. With a solid balance sheet and healthy order books, Pankl is well financed for organic growth and additional smart complementary acquisitions, providing continued vindication of QINO Flagship’s unique investment strategy.”

QINO Flagship AG
Daniel Marty
T: +41 (0) 41 766 5333
F: +41 (0) 41 766 5334
E: dm@QINO.com
I: www.qino.com

Creatix Communication Agency
Neil Wilkins
Tel +43 (0)688 8683830
wilkins@creatix.at

QINO Flagship AG is a Swiss investment company, founded in 2000 and based in Baar, Switzerland. Its shares are officially quoted on the BX Berne eXchange and are also traded on the OTC markets of the Vienna, Berlin, Frankfurt, Munich and Stuttgart stock exchanges.

Current investments include:
Jajah Inc. (www.jajah.com) - pioneer of Web-activated telephony
Pankl Racing Systems AG (www.pankl.com) - manufacturer of engine and drivetrain components for global motor racing and aerospace industries
Heilig & Schubert Software AG (www.hs-soft.com) - developer of email and file archiving software
Update Software AG (www.update.com) - CRM software solution provider

QINO Flagship’s portfolio is concentrated on a very select number of exciting investments; resulting returns tend not to correlate with broad market indices and may therefore not be suitable for all investors.

This release was published on openPR.