February 2021 Features

• TSG and Clearent Merge to Form Xplor, a Global Platform Integrating Software, Payments and Commerce-Enabling Services

  February 26, 2021

  Clearent, a full-service, integrated payment solutions provider based in the United States and Transaction Services Group (TSG), a global provider of business management software and integrated payments for the subscription economy, today announced that they have entered into a definitive merger agreement. TSG and Clearent, both portfolio companies of Advent International (“Advent”), one of the world’s largest private equity firms and a leading investor in payments technology, are combining to create a superior global platform designed to integrate software, payments, and commerce-enabling solutions for specific vertical markets.

• Atlanta Marketing Startup Terminus Raises $90M for International Expansion

  February 26, 2021

  Terminus, the leading account-based marketing platform, announced it raised a $90 million Series C from Boston-based Great Hill Partners with participation from existing investors Atlanta Ventures, Edison Partners, and Hallett Capital to accelerate data products innovation, hiring and market expansion.

• Atlanta/DeKalb Business Leaders Invited to Local Event Solving Local Issues

  February 25, 2021

  Creature Comforts Brewing and goBeyondProfit will host a business collaboration event on Friday, February 26 at 11 a.m. via Zoom. Attendees will gain a greater understanding of some of the DeKalb area’s burning community issues, an introduction to a replicable model for collective problem solving and opportunities to collaborate with other area businesses.

• Georgia Companies Should Prioritize International Opportunities for Growth in 2021

  February 25, 2021

  2020 posed unique challenges for business worldwide, particularly small businesses across Georgia. This is certainly true of Georgia exporters, who had to navigate unprecedented disruption in key markets around the world.

• Georgia’s Banks Post Gains in Loans, Deposits, Assets for 2020

  February 24, 2021

  Georgia’s 157 FDIC-insured banks closed out 2020 with increased loans, deposits and assets at year-end compared to 2019. According the latest FDIC data, loans were up 10%, deposits grew by 22%, and assets increased by 17% in 2020.

• UGA Honors Late Judge Horace Johnson at Annual Leadership Conference

  February 24, 2021

  The University of Georgia J.W. Fanning Institute for Leadership Development presented its 2021 Innovations in Community Leadership Award posthumously to Superior Court Judge Horace J. Johnson Jr. in honor of his commitment to developing leaders and strengthening his hometown of Newton County and communities across Georgia.

• Annual TEDxAtlanta “Brain Spa” Returns to Explore, “Begin at the Beginning”

  February 23, 2021

  TEDxAtlanta 2021 will be streamed live to living rooms everywhere on April 16th. With 2020 in the rear-view mirror, the TEDxAtlanta Mainstage event themed, “Begin at the Beginning,” will spotlight ideas epitomizing the power of the human spirit and celebrate innovations from Georgians and more.

• Providing Georgia with a 21st Century Transportation System

  February 23, 2021

  Accessibility and connectivity are critical factors in a region’s quality of life and economic competitiveness. Over the last decade, Georgia has experienced remarkable progress in developing its transportation and infrastructure network.

• Atlanta-based Company, Carbice, Advances to Full-Scale Production with Help from Georgia Centers of Innovation

  February 22, 2021

  Thermal tape, a material not usually thought about to the everyday consumer, is woven into almost every electronic device that people use. While there are applications of this material that impact the traditional consumer, Georgia-based Carbice, has set its sights on producing for clients in the space and aerospace industries.

• Atlanta Science Festival Returns March 13th-27th

  February 22, 2021

  Atlanta Science Festival (ASF), the city’s premier celebration of all things science, returns March 13th-27th. With science relevant now more than ever, the Festival reimagines itself as a virtual/in-person hybrid featuring more than 80 events.

• Securing Connections in an Unsecured World: Georgia’s Europe Office Opens Transatlantic Dialogue on Cybersecurity

  February 22, 2021

  As a part of the Digital Business Association out of Berlin, SIBB’s “Berlin Meets the USA” event series, the Georgia Department of Economic Development hosted a cybersecurity-focused webinar in January.

• Georgia Power & Atlanta Airlines Terminal Company Announce $100M Investment in Atlanta Airport Infrastructure

  February 19, 2021

  Georgia Power and the Atlanta Airlines Terminal Company (AATC) today announced an approximately $100 million investment in Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport’s infrastructure to help ensure the highest reliability with the most resilient power system for the world’s busiest airport.

• NBA All-Star 2021 To Be Held On March 7th In Atlanta

  February 19, 2021

  The National Basketball Association (NBA) announced today that NBA All-Star 2021 will be held on Sunday, March 7 at State Farm Arena in Atlanta, home of the Atlanta Hawks, where the league’s annual global celebration of the game will take place on one night for the first time.

• Georgia Film and Television Production off to Strong Start in 2021

  February 19, 2021

  Despite the worldwide pandemic bringing Georgia’s film and television industries to a complete halt in March of 2020, there are very positive signs for Georgia’s production world in 2021. More than 35 scripted film and television projects are already in the works, and stage space is quickly being snapped up for future projects.

• Following An Unexpected Rebound In M&A, Businesses Are Banking On A New Kind Of Dealmaking For Growth In A Post-Covid World

  February 19, 2021

  2020 was a volatile year for M&A, with an almost complete halt in deal activity in the early months of the Covid-19 crisis and a rebound in the second half of the year, when deal value rose by more than 30% in the third and fourth quarters. Bain & Company's new survey of nearly 300 M&A practitioners shows that appetite for M&A remains robust, with about half of respondents expecting higher M&A activity in their industries in 2021.

• Aerotropolis Atlanta CIDs Announce Name Change to ATL Airport Community Improvement Districts

  February 18, 2021

  The Airport West Community Improvement District (AWCID) and Airport South Community Improvement District (ASCID) Board leaders announced on February 11th a new name and collective brand. ATL Airport Community Improvement Districts (AACIDs) will replace the former DBA of Aerotropolis Atlanta Community Improvement Districts.

• AT&T Foundation Makes Transformational Donation of $100,000 to an Innovative New Nonprofit Providing Critical Support to Carver STEAM Academy Students and Families

  February 18, 2021

  COR Inc., has received a $100,000 donation from the AT&T Foundation to support on-campus behavioral health services for Carver STEAM Academy students – addressing trauma and removing barriers to educational success.

• Georgia Research Alliance Marks 30 Years of Impact

  February 18, 2021

  Thirty years of investment in university research and entrepreneurship is paying big dividends for the State of Georgia, according to metrics released by the Georgia Research Alliance.

• National State of the Workforce Report Highlights Georgia’s Accomplishments

  February 18, 2021

  The National Association of State Workforce Agencies (NASWA) released its bi-annual State of the Workforce Report yesterday outlining how the workforce agencies in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. Virgin Islands assisted American workers through one of the worst economic downturns our country has experienced.

• Georgia-Pacific President & CEO Christian Fischer to Kick Off Executive Webinar Series

  February 17, 2021

  USA India Business Summit (UIBS) has a distinguished history of being the largest conference of its kind in the South–East USA. For last twelve years, UIBS has organized many events and summits with participation of Georgia Institute of Technology (GT CIBER) and many other partners.

• Georgia Made a Symbol of Community Pride, Quality

  February 17, 2021

  Nearly one year after celebrating Georgia Made Day at the State Capitol, the program has become a point of pride for manufacturing companies and Georgians in every corner of the state. Georgia Made also provides businesses with opportunities for additional support in logistics, manufacturing and marketing of goods produced in Georgia.

• Goizueta Business School Start:ME Accelerator Program Selects 49 Atlanta Area Ventures for 2021

  February 16, 2021

  Forty-nine promising small businesses are now part of the 2021 Start:ME Accelerator, a free, intensive three month business training program from the Goizueta Business School for promising ventures in the metro-Atlanta communities of East Lake, Clarkston and Southside Atlanta.

• Georgia Ranked Top 10 Exporting State in 2020 for First Time

  February 16, 2021

  Governor Brian P. Kemp announced that the State of Georgia ranked among the United States’ Top Ten exporting states in 2020 for the first time. Georgia merchandise exports reached 215 unique countries and territories and experienced the lowest rate of export contraction among all top ten states, despite headwinds from a global pandemic.

• In SK Plant, Trade Secret Thief Gives Georgia False Choice Between Jobs and Justice

  February 16, 2021

  The future is electric, and Georgia has spent a great deal of energy—and hundreds of millions in development incentives—to secure its position in the economy of tomorrow as a high-tech manufacturing corridor.

• Georgia Power Shares How Corporate Philanthropy is Moving Atlanta Communities Forward

  February 15, 2021

  Bentina Terry, senior vice president of Metro Atlanta & Corporate Relations for Georgia Power, recently participated in a virtual session at the “Changing Our World’s Atlanta Forging Forward Conference Series,” focused on idea sharing, innovative solutions and a path forward within the metro community.