Pete Seligman, an experienced investor and business operator, has made a personal investment in ticketless parking system company Ybern.
Seligman has been appointed a non-executive director of the company.
Wollongong-based Ybern was founded in 2010 by Vaso Stojackovic, a wireless engineer who formerly worked for Nortel Networks. Last year, Japan Mehta joined the business after four years as chief operating officer at Sydney-based parking systems company Duncan Solutions. Mehta is now chief executive and Stjackovic, chief entrepreneur.
Seligman has been a long-term investor in, and director of, Duncan Solutions after Alpin Group, which he co-founded, acquired it in 2015. Anacacia Capital made an undisclosed investment in Duncan in 2018 from its $300 million third fund.
Although Ybern and Duncan operate in the same space, Seligman said their technologies are complementary rather than competitive and the companies mostly target different markets.
Duncan focuses on providing complete parking control systems which local government authorities use to monitor, and charge for, parking in streets and car parks, he said. The company produces a range of associated technologies and also partners with other technology providers (including Ybern) to deliver comprehensive parking solutions to local governments.
Ybern’s technology is designed to provide ticketless parking solutions in off-street car parks and sales primarily target owners and operators of commercial properties and businesses that operate their own car parks. The technology is quick to install and suitable for a wide range of operations.
Seligman said he had been impressed by the commitment of the Ybern team, the sophistication of its technology, along with its simplicity of use. The smart camera system records full view images of vehicles front and back while other systems rely on single beam of light technology to recognise number plates as vehicles enter car parks.
Ybern recently won a competitive tender to design a ticketless parking system for the large JQZ precinct development in St Leonards, Sydney.
Seligman said larger development projects such as this, which can take a few years to generate returns, when combined with existing term contracts and brownfield sites provide a strong foundation for growth. This represents a substantial market in Australia and there is also long-term potential to enter overseas markets.