Banter makes e-commerce service and customer relations applications. Siebel Systems is traded on Nasdaq at a company value of $40.5 billion.
Israeli start-up Banter is negotiating with US company Siebel Systems to be acquired for $385 million. Banter makes e-commerce service and customer relations applications.
Banter’s software enables automatic B2C customer correspondence management. The software is designed to handle customer questions in order to reduce an organization’s customer relations communications burden.
Banter’s software is based on Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology, giving it the ability to “learn” and improve its responses as its database accumulates. The company’s customers include Verisign, Zone Labs, and Wells Fargo Bank.
In March, Banter held a second financing round of $15 million, at an undisclosed company value. The round was led by the US Mayfield venture capital fund, with Lucent Ventures 2, the venture capital fund of Lucent, participating. Israeli funds investing in Banter are Israel Seed Partners (with a 5% holding), Benny Steimetz’s STI, Scorpio Communications and stock exchange listed FIBI. Lucent Ventures 2’s Arie Litman told “Globes” a week ago that Banter is one of the most interesting and promising companies in the fund’s portfolio.
Published by Israel's Business Arena on 6 September 2000