Finnish e-procurement and e-invoicing software company Basware has signed an agreement to acquire the network and e-invoicing business of Certipost, a subsidiary of Belgian postal operator bpost.

With the acquisition, the Certipost document exchange organization is set to be integrated within the Basware global organisation. The other activities of Certipost related to digital certificates and the Belgian electronic identity card remain within the bpost company.

THE PAYPERS 'e-Invoicing Guide 2012' show that world-wide there are 100s of e-billing and e-invoicing service providers and platforms. Full e-invoicing with 4-party exchange models will only work with a few dominant players. This will take a long time, and the authorities may lose patience and step in. Expect more takeovers and mergers in this space.