COMMERCE VISIONARY ERIC HUGHES TEAMS WITH FINANCE EXEC AND TECHNOLOGY ARCHITECT TO FORM TRANSACTION TECHNOLOGY COMPANY, SIMPLE ACCESS

[nobody@huge.cajones.com (Huge Cajones Remailer)]

Looks like Hughes and Hilby have found some fresh meat.

Given sac.net is currently in collection on nearly $100k (plus or minus
lawyers' and collectors' fees) to former suppliers, contractors, and
employees, it seems the greater fool theory of internet commerce is alive
and well. 

Hope the new boys are holding on to their wallets. And their nuts.

ReputationMunger

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   Media contact: Melody Kean Haller, Antenna Group, 415-896-1800,
   melody@antennapr.com
   
   COMMERCE VISIONARY ERIC HUGHES TEAMS WITH FINANCE EXEC AND TECHNOLOGY
   ARCHITECT TO FORM TRANSACTION TECHNOLOGY COMPANY, SIMPLE ACCESS
   
   San Francisco, CA -- March 24, 1997. The limits to growth facing
   today's commercial transaction systems are fundamental and
   unavoidable. Current architectures are not able to handle the
   complexity and auditing requirements of tomorrow, according to
   cryptographer, commerce visionary, and cypherpunks founder Eric
   Hughes.
   
   The solution is to build airtight accountability into the system from
   the start, according to Hughes, who has developed an infrastructure
   design methodology that solves this and several other crucial
   electronic commerce problems. Hughes today announced that he has
   formed a company, Simple Access, to build the next generation of
   transaction systems. He also announced two key additions to the
   executive team.
   
   John McArtor, currently President and CEO of Delta International,
   Inc., a private merchant bank, will lead Simple Access as chief
   executive officer. Dwight Koop, formerly executive vice-president of
   technology for Swiss Bank, will direct project development. Eric
   Hughes will continue as chief technology officer.
   
   "Eric Hughes has a deep and compelling vision of the future of
   electronic commerce," said Jerry Michalski, managing editor of Esther
   Dyson's monthly report, Release 1.0. "He understands the science of
   the Internet and security technologies, has insight into the systemic
   flow of commerce, and is informed by an overview of the
   socio-political history of money. The methodology he is proposing aims
   to enable a future in which transactions are undeniably clear.
   Anything Eric puts his energy into is worth paying attention to."
   
   Hughes said, "Currently, 'electronic commerce' is a euphemism for
   'commerce that doesn't work,' or soon won't work on a large scale. In
   order to prevent disasters on the horizon and build a foundation for
   safer and better systems, Simple Access is thinking ahead and solving
   problems at the infrastructure level."
   
   "We are working with leading companies that require their suppliers to
   have solid and experienced managers, so we brought on proven leaders,"
   Hughes continued. "McArtor and Koop meet and exceed those criteria."
   
   "With my 25 years of commercial and investment banking experience,
   I've worked with a lot of bright technologists, and these are some of
   the best," said CEO John McArtor. "I jumped at the opportunity to join
   them. The development team at Simple Access has an intimate knowledge
   of real-world business problems. They are addressing issues at the
   core of domestic and international finance, issues that are very
   important to me."
   
   Simple Access' Director of Software Development, Dwight Koop, said,
   "The technologies we are developing will address serious and immediate
   problems of large-scale commerce. These are elegant designs which can
   be applied especially well in high-stakes transaction systems to
   assure an unprecedented level of accountability, auditability and
   efficiency."
   
   Simple Access is in late-stage negotiations with several strategically
   chosen Fortune 100 companies in different realms of commerce. The
   company is now developing custom solutions, building on the widely
   usable transaction methodology that Hughes has developed. The
   company's current efforts include telephony and Internet provisioning
   and billing, international trade documents, and digital money.
   
   Eric Hughes is a cryptographer and an expert on payment systems and
   commercial interaction. He has consulted to banks, software companies,
   and payment processing firms, and frequently speaks on the subjects of
   security, digital money, and payment systems. He is also renowned as
   the co-founder of the cypherpunks. Hughes authored "A Long Term
   Perspective on Electronic Commerce," which comprised the March 1995
   issue of Release 1.0.
   
   John W. McArtor is president and CEO of Delta International, Inc., a
   private merchant bank engaged in the business of creative corporate
   finance and capital management. Since 1972, Delta International has
   been designing, structuring, syndicating, and managing financial
   vehicles for private sector investment. McArtor's areas of expertise
   include the management of capital in domestic and global futures
   markets, and the creation of venture capital for the
   telecommunications industry.
   
   Dwight Koop was formerly executive vice-president of technology for
   Swiss Bank, one of the world's premier trading institutions. He will
   serve as acting director of software development with Simple Access,
   which will co-develop and co-market projects with New Logic, Inc.,
   where Koop is a principal and practice director of intra/Internet
   systems development. Koop has more than twenty years of solid
   management and consulting background in all aspects of technology,
   with special expertise in creating competitive advantage in the
   financial industry.
   
   Headquartered in San Francisco, California, Simple Access is a
   technology firm that designs and builds infrastructure for finance,
   commerce, security, telephony, and the Internet. Simple Access
   develops solutions to facilitate and simplify interaction at the
   infrastructure level. The company's areas of expertise include payment
   systems, data security, cryptography, and transaction processing. The
   privately held company was founded in 1995. Simple Access is located
   at One Sutter Street, Suite 500, San Francisco, California 94104. To
   reach the company, phone 415-392-0526, fax 415-986-8113 or send email
   to info@sac.net.
   
   For media information please contact Melody Kean Haller, Antenna
   Group, 415-896-1800, or melody@antennapr.com.