NEW NOTARY LAW ATTRACTING VENTURE CAPITAL INTEREST IN DELAWARE
| Status: Release Date: |
For Immediate Release Tuesday, August 26, 2008 |
Contacts: | Christopher Portante |
Bill Freeborn |
Wilmington, Del. - Lt. Governor John C. Carney, Jr. and Jim Bacchus, CEO of the Information Assurance Corporation (IAC), jointly announced that the company has raised a first round of venture funding and will be opening offices at the Riverfront in Wilmington. These developments are a direct result of the recent passage of Delaware's new Electronic Notary Law (Senate Bill 246).
Lt. Governor Carney, Chair of the Delaware Science and Technology Council, was joined by State officials, venture capital investors, attorneys and bankers at the announcement which featured a demonstration of proprietary technology developed by IAC for electronic notarizations. The demonstration highlighted how this technology can be used to enable electronic commerce, reduce fraud, and improve efficiency by eliminating the costs associated with shipping, printing and copying of paper-based notarized documents.
"I am convinced that the key to Delaware 's future growth rests on our ability to collaborate and build partnerships in support of building a science- and technology-based economy," said Lt. Governor Carney. "Delaware's electronic notarization initiative is truly a model for what we are trying to do here in Delaware by creating a business friendly environment, fostering commercialization of new technology, attracting venture capital, and collaborating both locally and regionally."
"Our corporate headquarters will be here in Wilmington and we look forward to working with the State to create a dynamic new digital enterprise that extends the trusted Delaware brand into the field of electronic notarizations," said Jim Bacchus, CEO of the Information Assurance Corporation. Mr. Bacchus was joined by a number of venture capital investors and advisors to the company including representatives from Microsoft Corporation, First State Innovation, the Office of Economic Innovations and Partnerships at the University of Delaware and The Musser Group, one of the nation's leading supporters of technology start-ups. IAC's offices will be located in the historic Harlan & Hollingsworth Building on the Riverfront at 300 Water Street.
Senate Bill 246, co-sponsored by Senator Anthony DeLuca (D-Varlano) and Representative Deborah Hudson (R-Fairthorne), unanimously passed the Delaware General Assembly and was signed by Governor Minner in June 2008. The bill authorizes the Governor to appoint notaries who can apply electronic notary seals, rather than the traditional rubber stamp or crimper seal used on most notarized documents today.
Senate Bill 246 also allows the Governor to appoint non-residents as electronic notaries if they are licensed attorneys or employees of licensed financial service companies. This unique feature of the law may allow for the use of Delaware law for electronic notarizations by national financial service companies, attorneys and others. The bill also creates a potentially lucrative revenue source by allowing the Secretary of State to set a fee to be collected by the State each time a Delaware electronic notary seal is used.
"This has been a great collaboration and the Delaware Department of State is looking forward to working with the Department of Technology and Information and others to develop standards for electronic notarization that allow for a trusted, secure and legally enforceable exchange of electronic documents and records," said Rick Geisenberger, Assistant Secretary of State. Geisenberger noted that the new law takes effect on February 1, 2009 to provide the State with time to provide appropriate training to existing Delaware notaries and to establish guidelines affecting electronic notaries.
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