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Emerald Solutions plans to raise $50 million in IPO

The Net services firm files with the Securities Exchange Commission to sell an undisclosed number of shares in an initial public offering the company expects will raise about $50 million.

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Emerald Solutions said it plans to raise $50 million in a proposed initial public offering, according to a recent filing with the Securities Exchange Commission.

Emerald, an Internet services firm that focuses on connecting a company's Web applications to existing business applications and back-end business management systems, filed with the SEC yesterday to sell an undisclosed number of shares. The company said it expects to raise about $50 million.

IPOs for Internet services firms have grabbed the attention of analysts and investors in recent months as demand for their services has exploded. According to market research firm International Data Corp., the market for Internet services is projected to reach $78.6 billion by 2003 as companies shift business to the Web.

The Portland, Ore.-based company competes against a number of Internet services firms including Context Integration, Eggrock Partners, Tanning Technology and NerveWire.

Emerald said its customers include AT&T, Bell Atlantic, GTE, Boeing, Pfizer, e-commerce software maker Commerce One, construction industry Web site Buildnet and applications service provider (ASP) Corio.

In its filing, the company said revenues from its five largest clients decreased from 90 percent in fiscal year 1997 to 64 percent in fiscal year 1999. For fiscal year 1999, AT&T accounted for more than 10 percent of the company's revenues, according to the filing.

The company, founded in 1997, posted net losses of $5.4 million in fiscal year 1999. Emerald said it has 457 employees and offices in Bellevue, Wash.; Warren, N.J.; McLean, Va.; Walnut Creek, Calif.; Dallas, Birmingham, Minneapolis, Denver and Phoenix.

Emerald's co-founder and CEO Martin Wright leads a management team that includes former executives from Big Five consulting firms KPMG, Andersen Consulting and giant systems integrator EDS.

The company's offering is being managed by Deutsche Banc Alex.Brown, Robertson Stephens, Adams, Harkness & Hill and Pacific Crest. Emerald said it plans to trade on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbol "EMSO."