EQS-News: The Payments Group Holding advances strategic initiatives successfully

+++ Press release +++
 

The Payments Group Holding advances
strategic initiatives successfully

• Further development of core investments and new growth fields
• Commencement of discussions with the SGT Capital Group to resolve disputes
• Expected rescission from the acquisition of The Payments Group agreed in 2024 per 30 March 2026

Frankfurt/Main, 27 March 2026 – The Payments Group Holding (PGH), a holding company based in Frankfurt am Main that was founded in 2012 and renamed in August 2024, provides an update on the current status of its key strategic initiatives. These consist of the realization of its assets and the new opportunities and business fields presented on 13 December 2025.

The focus of the assets is on the 35 % stake in the strongly growing AuctionTech as well as receivables against the SGT Capital Group in the amount of 5.9 million euro. AuctionTech is the European market leader with its SaaS-based white-label solution PropNow for digital bidding and offer processes in the real estate market and is currently preparing the implementation of a promising growth initiative in the global high-end luxury real estate segment, which is expected to further increase its future scalability and value creation potential.

On 20 February and 16 March 2026, for the first time since PGH separated from the SGT Capital Group two years ago, preliminary talks were held to reach mutually acceptable solutions between the two sides. Further talks are scheduled to follow shortly after easter. It was agreed to maintain confidentiality until solutions are reached.

The new opportunities and business fields pursued by PGH in 2026 comprise promising initiatives in the Artificial Intelligence and BioTech sectors.

Cognicare AI is a spin-off from PGH’s investment in the company builder Softmax AI. The company already offers proven and strongly demanded applications for the growing number of elderly care facilities. PGH holds an indirect stake of 18 % in this company. Due to very successful customer acquisition, Cognicare AI expects dynamic growth in 2026, which should enable the company to break even in the near future. Softmax AI intends to conduct several additional spin-offs in 2026. These include a computer vision tool for civil engineering to enable efficient assessment and documentation of structures, in particular transport infrastructure. In addition, a range of EdTech applications for professional training and recruitment are currently under development. Additionally, an AI voice box for children is planned, that engages in natural dialogue with them, patiently and knowledgeably answering their countless questions and thus imparting a wide range of knowledge and foreign languages in a playful way. PGH assumes that it will be able to gradually increase its indirect stake in such spin-offs.

In the biotech sector, PGH continues to expect to gain access in the coming months to an extraordinarily attractive early-stage investment opportunity that was presented in its press release of 16 January 2026.

As expected, following it’s press release of 3 January 2026, PGH has rescinded its acquisition of The Payments Group companies, which was agreed in 2024, as of 30 March 2026. Consequently, it will propose a name change to its annual general meeting in the summer of 2026. As a result, the planned transfer of 19 to 23 million treasury shares to the sellers and the prior placement of several million additional treasury shares to raise a cash component of the transaction will definitely no longer take place. PGH will therefore, for the time being, retain its 34,901,800 treasury shares. In PGH’s view, the net asset value (NAV) per share, including non-capitalized values and based on the currently outstanding 11,400,000 shares, is likely to be in the range of 1.50 euro and thus significantly higher than the current share price.

The 10 % convertible bond 2026/29 (ISIN DE000A460PY4) issued by PGH in January 2026 is currently trading on the Hamburg Stock Exchange at a price of 101 %.

 

About The Payments Group Holding

The Payments Group Holding (PGH) is a holding company founded in 2012, rebranded in August 2024 and headquartered in Frankfurt am Main. The Company focuses on existing assets as well as on the new opportunities and fields of activity announced in its press releases on 13 December 2025 and 16 January 2026 including the operation of an AI-focused company builder called Softmax AI GmbH together with AI experts, in which it holds a 25 % stake, and the spin-offs resulting from this. In addition, PGH holds from its history as a leading German venture capital provider under the German Startups Group brand a heritage VC-portfolio of minority stakes in partly promising German startups via its wholly owned subsidiary German Startups Group VC GmbH.
 

More information: www.tpgholding.com.

Investor Relations Contact
Rosenberg Strategic Communications
Alexander Schmidt
a.schmidt@rosenbergsc.com