News

ARMONK, NY - May 27, 2009: IBM (NYSE: IBM) announced today it is making up to $5 billion (USD) available to finance IT initiatives in key economic stimulus projects in Europe, Asia-Pacific and North America, through IBM Global Financing, IBM's lending and leasing business segment. Today’s announcement follows the availability of up to $2 billion announced by IBM on April 30 to help jump start economic stimulus programs.

Specifically, IBM will make available up to $2 billion in financing in Europe and up to approximately $1 billion in the Asia-Pacific region. IBM Global Financing also will extend its North American coverage to include financing for smart technology projects in Canada.

The financing will help organizations move ahead with IT projects in 2009, while awaiting government funding, to build the technological and environmental infrastructure of the 21st century.

"There is a great connectivity among nations," said John Callies, General Manager of IBM Global Financing. "While the various stimulus packages in different countries were designed to keep their own economies on track, it is as joined economies that we can rise from this global downturn together. In this context, IBM Global Financing is extending its stimulus financing program to countries in Europe and Asia-Pacific to help global recovery."

IBM has already been helping enterprises and local governments in these areas build their infrastructures to spur growth in key IT projects such as Smart Grid, Health Information Technology, and Smart Transportation. The financing will be targeted to companies and organizations in countries with government funding committed to help economic stimulus, create new industries and enable infrastructure improvements.

The bulk of the $5 billion will be for financing (where available based on local financing practices) for smart technology projects for credit-qualified clients. The financing could be in the form of:

• Low rates and flexible financing options.
• Deferred payment plans.
• Enterprise Financing facilities that offer structured lines of credit.
• Specialized project financing packages that allow clients to align payment streams to anticipated benefits throughout the project.

"The recession is going to drive many organizations, public and private, to make transformational changes in their IT environment. However, without access to the correct financing offerings, a significant set of opportunities will be lost and society-wide projects, like SmartGrid, will be substantially delayed." David Mitchell, Senior Vice President, UK-based IT Research, Ovum. "This is a bold move by IBM to help accelerate stimulus benefits into the current time frame."

"The launch of the IBM Global Financing stimulus program in Australia comes at the right time," says Jean-Marc Annonier, IDC Australia Program Manager for IT Spending. "While many businesses could potentially benefit from these new Federal Budget policy measures, some are still having difficulties obtaining financing in a tight credit market. IBM Global Financing's stimulus financing offer will be certainly welcomed by organizations willing to modernize their IT infrastructure in order to prepare for the increased activity generated by heavy public investment programs."

IBM Global Financing stimulus financing will mainly target enterprises and municipalities looking to implement technology projects consisting of a majority portion of IBM hardware, software and technology services components. Financing also can be applied to non-IBM technology as part of a larger IBM solution.

Governments around the world from China to Germany to Canada have developed or are developing economic stabilization measures to spur employment opportunities and stimulate their economies. Many have developed programs to direct action towards "smart" investment to create jobs and to enable efficiency, sustainability and innovation.

IBM has been actively involved in smart investment areas in Europe, Asia-Pacific and North America. For example:

• In Canada, IBM is helping the Toronto East General Hospital use technology to improve patient care. Using instant wireless communication, healthcare professionals can contact each other without paging and phones, and have real-time access to patient information from anywhere in the hospital. This enhances patient care and safety, improves collaboration between clinicians and caregivers and reduces medical errors.
• IBM is working with the French utility company EDF to see how utilities can use information from smart metering, as well as future sources of data, to automate the way grids react in a crisis. Both companies will also work to find the best ways to integrate power generation from intermittent renewables like solar and wind energy for use in electric vehicles and other new low carbon technologies.
• With traffic congestion on the rise in cities around the world, more governments are investing in building smarter rail systems. IBM is working with leading rail networks to improve the speed, safety and efficiency of both passenger and freight trains. IBM recently announced new rail projects in China, Taiwan and The Netherlands. These projects can make the global economy stronger, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and reduce road congestion.
• In Denmark, IBM is teaming with DONG Energy to implement an Intelligent Utility Network, installing remote monitoring and control devices that give the company an unprecedented amount of information about the current state of the grid. The new solution also involves extensive analysis of the data provided by the remote devices, as well as reengineering of DONG Energy's business processes.

About IBM Global Financing
IBM Global Financing, the financing business segment of IBM and the world’s premier single-source provider for IT financing solutions, serves commercial clients ranging from small businesses to the majority of the Fortune 100. With assets of $36 billion worldwide, IBM Global Financing provides project financing, commercial financing and asset-recovery services to 125,000 clients in more than 55 countries. Additional information can be found at http://www.ibm.com/financing.

Contact(s) information:

Mike Boden
IBM Media Relations
416-478-7117
mboden@ca.ibm.com

Fred Clarke
IBM IGF Media Relations
914-478-7117
fredc@us.ibm.com