Global Blue, Leading Provider of Traveler Commerce Technology Solutions, Names David Baxby as CEO

-- Company Completes Planned CEO Succession; Also Adds Edenred CEO Jacques Stern to Board

EYSINS, Switzerland, April 10, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Global Blue, the leading provider of traveler commerce technology solutions including tax-free shopping and dynamic currency conversion, today announced the appointment of David Baxby as Chief Executive Officer and a member of the board of directors, effective immediately. Mr. Baxby joins with a distinguished track record spanning nearly two decades, including more than ten years at Virgin Group, where he worked closely with founder Sir Richard Branson to manage and grow Virgin's global portfolio of branded consumer services. Most recently, Mr. Baxby was Co-CEO of all of Virgin Group and was particularly instrumental in Virgin's global airline activities and its Asia-Pacific operations across multiple sectors including travel, financial services, and telecommunications.

"We are thrilled to welcome David Baxby to Global Blue," said the company's board. "David brings a unique combination of skills tailor-made for Global Blue, spanning enterprise operations and consumer branding in both established and emerging markets. He is the ideal executive to lead the company's talented employees and further enhance Global Blue's important relationships with merchants, consumers, governments, and financial institutions."

"Global Blue is a rare franchise that has both existing market leadership and excellent prospects for future growth," Mr. Baxby noted. "Continued investment in technology to make the consumer and merchant process seamless will position the company to achieve this significant upside potential."

Consistent with the company's succession planning, Mr. Baxby takes over from Per Setterberg, who is retiring after 26 years of loyal service to the company. The board commented: "We would like to thank Per for his innumerable and invaluable contributions over many years. As CEO, he presided over important accomplishments including geographic and product expansion, creating a true market leader and producing a several-fold increase in company performance. He remains a part of the Global Blue family, and we look forward to his continuing counsel and advice."

The company also strengthened its board by adding Jacques Stern as a non-executive director. Mr. Stern is Chairman and CEO of Edenred (Euronext: EDEN.PA), which pioneered the Ticket Restaurant® meal voucher system and is the world leader in various prepaid corporate services.

"Jacques has spearheaded a tremendous success story, helping to build Edenred into a large-scale digital network with more than €1 billion in revenue, 1.4 million affiliated merchants and 40 million beneficiaries across 40 countries in established and emerging markets," said the board. "Given the parallels with Global Blue, we are privileged to have his perspectives and guidance."

Global Blue is owned by Silver Lake, the global leader in technology investing; Partners Group, the global private markets investment management firm; and co-investors including Global Blue's management team.

About Global Blue

Global Blue, the leading provider of traveler commerce technology solutions, makes retail transactions between merchants and their foreign customers easier and more rewarding for everyone. Having invented the concept of Tax Free Shopping more than thirty years ago, Global Blue now offers a range of services that help consumers shop and spend wisely when they are in foreign countries, and help merchants and banks better serve this international traveler market. Global Blue works with over 270,000 affiliated retailers, shopping brands and hotels in 43 countries and processes over 35 million transactions per year. The company's headquarters are in Eysins, Switzerland. For more information, please visit http://www.global-blue.com/corporate.

Contact

Marie Bergfelt, Global Blue
+41-22365-6898
mbergfelt@globalblue.com

Emily Levin, Brunswick Group for Silver Lake
+1-212-333-3810
silverlake@brunswickgroup.com