OPENLANE Names New CEO

February 03, 2009

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MENLO PARK, Calif. — OPENLANE announced Tuesday that it has appointed a veteran of the fleet and finance industries to serve as its new chief executive officer, effective immediately.

Named to the post is Daniel Farrar, who was most recently a general partner for Morgenthaler Partners, where he was in charge of operating efficiencies and executing value creation funds for a $3 billion investment fund.

He also served for eight years as CEO of GE Capital Fleet Services Europe, based in Brussels, Belgium.

Farrar's appointment follows a record-breaking January where officials said more units were sold on OPENLANE.com than in any other month in the company's decade-long history.

"OPENLANE continues to deliver excellent growth despite the recent economic and industry downturn," explained Michael Stein, chairman of the board at OPENLANE. "OPENLANE has a tremendous opportunity to continue along this path given its exceptional value proposition to both consignors and dealers in the wholesale automotive market.

"We believe Daniel Farrar will be a tremendous addition to what is already a very strong management team as OPENLANE continues to enhance its leading position in the industry," he added.

"Daniel has led multinational organizations through all phases of growth and has delivered excellent results throughout his entire career," Stein continued. "We're delighted to welcome him to OPENLANE."

Farrar's career has also included serving on the board of directors for Aegis Group, ABRA Auto, GELCO Corp. and Morgenthaler portfolio companies Extrusion Technologies, Formed Fiber Technologies, Mark Andy International and Precision Parts International.

Moreover, Farrar was the chairman of the board for GE Capital Bilfinans (in Sweden), Drive Diagnostics (Israel) and Comm Works (U.S.).

He is currently a member of the board of trustees for Worcester Polytechnic Institute and is a member of the board of overseers for the DeCordova Museum in Lincoln, Mass.

"OPENLANE's value proposition is incredibly clear and designed to deliver greater efficiencies and tremendous cost, time and market savings to all of its customers," Farrar pointed out.

"Both automotive consignors and dealers have embraced OPENLANE over the past 10 years, and the pace is accelerating due to the shorter sales cycles, reduced cost of capital, environmentally friendly practices and overall savings OPENLANE brings in today's market," he added.

"The stellar management team at OPENLANE has built a phenomenal business, and I look forward to joining the team and working closely with Clive Kinross and Peter Kelly in helping guide the company to the next level," Farrar continued.

Paul Madera, a member of OPENLANE's board of directors, added: "The board is delighted to welcome Daniel Farrar to OPENLANE as CEO. As investors, we seek to participate in high-growth companies that have proven technology and processes in place.

"Since we invested in OPENLANE in 2007, the company has continued to build upon its established customer base, has leveraged technology to develop innovative solutions for the automotive industry, increased sales and has demonstrated exceptional growth," he pointed out.

"Daniel's management experience complements the strengths of the current team, and we are very excited about the opportunity that lies ahead," Madera noted.

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