International headquarters in Asia Pacific

Verifone Holdings has expanded its Asia Pacific presence with the opening of its international headquarters in Singapore last week. The headquarters will run the company's global supply chain management and house a research and development centre.

The global supply chain centre will use the latest technologies to increase supply chain efficiencies and cost savings.

"This is a very significant move for the Asia Pacific region and for the Australian market where there is significant potential for growth for electronic payments systems," said Bryamm Langton, VeriFone's general manager Australia and New Zealand. "VeriFone's supply chain and R&D facilities were previously headquartered in the US and moving them to Singapore is a major strategic move."

The relocation to Singapore will increase the company's speed and flexibility in responding to regional customer demands and market opportunities.

"This is a significant investment in the region for us. We have immediate plans for staffing of 69 people to support global R&D functions as well as regional finance, sales and marketing activities across Australasia, South East Asia and the Indian Sub-Continent," Langton said. "For the Australian market it will mean that having a research facility on its doorstep will help to keep Australian banks and financial institutions in front of electronic payment technology trends."