Olive Group Engages Monitor Clipper Partners as Lead Financial Investor to Build Global Leader in Intelligent Security and Critical Infrastructure Protection

Washington, D.C./Dubai, U.A.E./Cambridge, MA. Olive Group, a global end-to-end provider of critical infrastructure protection and security solutions, announced today the close of an equity financing round led by new investor Monitor Clipper Partners. The investment represents the start of a strategic partnership between Olive Group and Monitor Clipper in the rapidly growing global security market, and is intended to support the acquisition, growth and working capital needs of the company. Details of the investment were not announced.

In announcing the investment, David Langstaff, CEO of Olive Group, said, “The collaboration of Olive and Monitor Clipper is very exciting. It brings capital, strategic relationships, and a young global security company together around a shared vision of building a market leader in the emerging field of intelligent integrated security solutions.“

Michael Bell, Managing Director of Monitor Clipper Partners, said, “Olive’s bold, success-oriented strategy and leadership team are very attractive to us. Over the last eighteen months, they have brought on board into executive and operating management roles a core group of former Veridian leaders with whom we have a history of great success. We share their vision that the market is ready for security to be considered as an integrated, technology-enabled, systems-level offering. We are eager to invest significant additional capital in Olive over the coming years in support of the company’s strategy and management team.”

Chris St. George, co-founder and Managing Director of Olive Group, noted, “Monitor Clipper is the right investor for Olive in that it brings not only capital, but through its affiliation with Monitor Group, access to an established global consulting business that complements Olive’s security offerings. The combination of the original Olive team, the former Veridian executive team, and Monitor Clipper is very exciting.”

About Olive Group
Olive Group is a global provider of integrated security and risk mitigation solutions that enable governments, non-governmental and international organizations, and commercial customers to assure high value assets. The company offers an array of security services and technology-enabled solutions to support critical infrastructure protection, post-conflict reconstruction, humanitarian work and emerging market opportunities. Olive Group operates in more than 30 countries with principal offices in Dubai, London and Washington, DC. Olive Group was founded in 2001 by Chris and David St. George, with Gavin Mayhew and John Yourston, all of whom remain with Olive Group in senior leadership positions. Recently, Olive Group has hired a number of former Veridian executives, including David Langstaff, Phil Lacombe, Jerry Howe, Jim Allen, John Hassoun and Gene Colabatistto.

About Monitor Clipper Partners
Monitor Clipper Partners is a private equity firm founded in 1998 to invest in middle market management buyouts, recapitalizations and growth equity financings. MCP partners with strong management teams that can benefit from MCP’s privileged relationship with Monitor Group, one of the world’s leading strategy consulting firms. MCP currently manages over $1.5 billion of capital and has invested over $1.2 billion in 25 transactions since making its first investment in February 1999.

17th September 2007