American Century Investments invests in Euronet

LEAWOOD, Kansas -- The venture capital arm of American Century Investments has invested $6 million in Euronet Services Inc. through a private purchase of Euronet stock, according to the Kansas City Star.

Euronet operates a network of ATMs, mostly in Europe. The publicly-owned company sold a 4.9 percent stake to American Century Ventures. Euronet's stock closed July 17 at $8.63, down 13 cents, on the Nasdaq Small Cap Market.

According to Daniel Henry, Euronet co-founder and chief operating officer, the company didn't need to raise the cash but valued the strategic link to American Century.

American Century, a Kansas City-based mutual fund company, created American Century Ventures earlier this year. It invests in companies in which American Century sees a strategic gain, such as using and helping to further develop those companies' products or services.

Diane Mulcahy, vice president of American Century Ventures, said the company is interested in Euronet's global distribution in financial services and particularly its wireless applications.

Euronet has introduced Arrowz Wireless Banking, which allows customers to access banking information with their mobile phones, and Arrowz Event Messaging.

American Century Ventures has made 10 such investments.