CIBT Introduces New Corporate Video and Business Updates

VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / July 20, 2015 / CIBT Education Group Inc. (TSX: MBA, OCTQX International: MBAIF) (“CIBT”) is pleased to report that it has completed a new corporate video which concisely depicts the Company’s expanding infrastructure and our ability to utilize this solid infrastructure to create the pipeline for our fastest growing education real-estate division. To view the corporate video, please visit us online at: www.cibt.net/about/.

“We are pleased to see that our business strategies and long term growth plan are being executed step by step, year over year despite turmoil occurring in various economic regions of the world,” commented Toby Chu, President and CEO, Vice Chairman of CIBT Education Group. “During the past decade, we foresaw a number of negative events that were forming which impacted our industry and the global capital markets. These significant events include the global financial crisis in 2008, fraudulent accounting issues relating to publicly traded companies with operations in China in 2009, and the declining trend of “for-private education sector” in the United States for the past 6 years which adversely impacted investors’ sentiment toward for-profit education companies in North America. During these challenging periods, the Company executed a number of strategic and substantial moves to steer clear of these abysses. The following is a short re-cap of the Company’s strategies is as follows:

– Prior to the global financial crisis, the Company raised substantial capital which was deployed to acquire valuable assets at inexpensive prices during the years of global financial crisis. These acquisitions included Sprott Shaw College, Acsenda School of Management and King George International College among others. These acquisitions boosted our consolidated revenue from $5 million to nearly $60 million in 5 years, while the global financial crisis was transpiring and large corporations were collapsing.

– During the global financial crisis era, the Company shifted its operational focus from China back to Canada in order to gain better and effective control of our business. This move effectively avoided the “China accounting syndrome” chaos between 2009 to 2013.

– During the same period, while the United States for-profit education sector was experiencing significant slow down due to student loan policy changes, CIBT started its diversification process to add an education-themed real estate component in order to complement its education revenue stream.

– When the capital markets began seeing signs of recovery in 2013, the Company sold one of its acquired assets, King George International College, for $13.5 million yielding a $9.3 million profit in less than 3 years.

– While Vancouver’s real estate prices started to escalate in 2013 and the rental vacancy rate was seeing a steep declining trend, the Company deployed its earned capital without diluting the share structure of CIBT and assembled a portfolio of under-valued student housing projects which formed the solid foundation of today’s Global Education City Holdings Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of CIBT Education Group.

– The education-themed real estate (student housing) portfolio of the various GEC projects has increased in value to a total of approximately $115 million based on current appraisals.

“While management is humbled by the success of its prudent approach, these strategic moves were carefully calculated, analyzed and effectively executed. We have streamlined the Company’s operations while pursuing emerging market growth without the emerging market risk. Our business focus – to recruit international students from over 50 countries to Canada so that we can educate them, house them and provide them with a memorable Canadian experience – is demonstrating positive results. We wish to thank our shareholders for their support and patience during our evolution over the past decade.”

About CIBT Education Group:

CIBT Education Group Inc. is an education management company focused on the global education market since 1994. Listed in Canada on the Toronto Stock Exchange and in the U.S on the OTCQX International, CIBT owns and operates a network of business, technical and language colleges in North America and Asia. CIBT offers cooperative joint programs in 12 countries with campuses, recruitment offices and training centers enrolling over 7,000 students annually. Its education business is operated through Sprott Shaw College (established in 1903), Acsenda School of Management, CIBT School of Business China, and Global Education Alliance Recruitment Centers in China and other overseas countries. Through these subsidiaries, CIBT offers recognized and approved business and management degrees, programs in college preparation, healthcare, hotel management and tourism, English language training, English Teacher Certifications, junior and high school preparation programs for overseas study, and other career/vocational training. CIBT also owns Irix Design Group, a leading design and advertising company based in Vancouver, Canada, Global Education Alliance (“GEA”) and Global Education City Holdings Inc. (“GEC”). GEA recruits international students for many elite kindergarten, primary, secondary schools and universities in North America. GEC is an investment holding and management company with a special focus on education related real estate projects in Canada. Visit us online at www.cibt.net.

For more information contact:

Toby Chu
Vice-Chairman, President & CEO
CIBT Education Group Inc.
Investor Relations Contact:
1-604-871-9909 extension 318 or | Email: info@cibt.net

SOURCE: CIBT Education Group Inc.

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