Silicon Valley Bank Provides Debt Facility to The Foundry in Carlyle Group LBO

SANTA CLARA, Calif. and LONDON, UK –– March 17^th 2011 —Silicon Valley Bank, the commercial banking division of SVB Financial Group (Nasdaq: SIVB) and financial partner to technology companies worldwide today announced that it has signed an agreement to provide visual effects software company, The Foundry Visionmongers Ltd (‘The Foundry'), with a Senior debt facility to help finance Carlyle Group's Leveraged Buyout of the company. The combined facility from Silicon Valley Bank consists of a five-year term loan and a five-year revolving line of credit. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.     

Established in 1996, The Foundry is now one of the leading innovators of visual effects and image processing technologies that boost productivity in motion picture and video post-production. Its software developments serve leading visual effects facilities worldwide including Warner Bros, Weta Digital, Sony Pictures Imageworks and The Moving Picture Company and its products have facilitated ambitious effects sequences on a host of Hollywood blockbusters including Harry Potter, Avatar and Alice in Wonderland.   

"The Foundry is a shining example of entrepreneurship in the UK," said Phil Cox, Head of the UK, Europe and Israel for Silicon Valley Bank. "Silicon Valley Bank has provided debt finance for The Foundry since early 2010 and is proud to be a part of our clients' growth and ongoing success."  

SVB Financial Group has had an office in London since 2004, and Silicon Valley Bank has been providing loans to UK-based technology and life science companies of all stages of their development from business start-up to mature companies in the sector.  SVB Financial Group UK Ltd. provides access to financial services as well as SVB's worldwide network of venture capitalists and partners. SVB Financial Group UK aims to give European technology, life science companies and venture capital investors access to the same targeted financial services as their U.S.-based counterparts, including sources of diverse debt capital such as venture debt, acquisition financing, working capital, capital call lines, growth capital and capex financing. In addition, the UK team offers access to foreign exchanges services, trade finance and U.S. banking for subsidiaries. 

About Silicon Valley Bank  

Silicon Valley Bank provides commercial banking services to emerging growth and mature companies in the technology, life science, private equity and premium wine industries. Through its focus on specialized markets and extensive knowledge of the people and business issues driving them, Silicon Valley Bank provides a level of service and partnership that measurably impacts its clients' success. Founded in 1983 and headquartered in Santa Clara, Calif., the company serves clients around the world through 26 U.S. offices and five international operations. Silicon Valley Bank is a member of global financial services firm SVB Financial Group (Nasdaq: SIVB), along with SVB Analytics, SVB Capital, SVB Global and SVB Private Client Services.  More information on the company can be found at www.svb.com. 

About The Foundry
The Foundry is a world-leading innovator of visual effects and image processing technologies that boost productivity in motion picture and video post-production.

The Foundry has a well-established client base that includes leading visual effects facilities worldwide, such as Warner Bros, The Moving Picture Company, Weta Digital, Framestore, Sony Pictures Imageworks and Digital Domain. It is at the cutting edge of software development, marketing and sales for visual effects compositing. 

In June 2009 The Foundry announced a management buyout for an undisclosed sum led by Advent Venture Partners. Advent backed The Foundry's management team, led by CEO Dr Bill Collis and the original founders, Simon Robinson and Bruno Nicoletti. As founder and Chief Scientist at The Foundry, Simon Robinson has recently been voted number 52 in Fast Company's second annual ranking of ‘The 100 Most Creative People in Business'. The Foundry is highly profitable and has more than doubled in size in the past two years. The Foundry's products support a wide range of award-winning host platforms including After Effects, Autodesk® Media and Entertainment Systems, Avid DS, Nuke, Shake and Final Cut Pro. In 2007, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences awarded a Sci-Tech Award® to The Foundry's development team for the Furnace image processing suite – and the company now holds two products with AMPAS Sci-Tech Award® winning technology including high-end compositing system Nuke. The Foundry is headquartered in London, and has offices in Los Angeles. For more information please visit: www.thefoundry.co.uk    

© The Foundry, its logo and product names are registered trademarks in the UK, USA and/or other countries. Academy Award is a registered trademark of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. All other trademarks contained herein are the property of their respective owners.   

Banking services are provided by Silicon Valley Bank, a member of the FDIC and the Federal Reserve System. SVB Financial Group is also a member of the Federal Reserve System.

SVB Financial Group UK Ltd. is registered in England and Wales at 7^th Floor, 41 Lothbury, London EC2R 7HF UK under No. 5572575 and is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority. This material has been issued by and approved by SVB Financial Group UK Ltd. as defined in Section 21 of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000. The services which are the subject of this material are not available to retail clients as defined by the FSA. The material is for information purposes only and should not be considered as an offer to sell or a solicitation to buy any of the investments mentioned within, or to make any investment decision.