Commerce One Middle East (C1 ME) has announced a new management team for distributor operations of the company.

Commerce One is a world leader in global e-commerce solutions for business.

The team is charged with launching regionally the Middle East's first e-commerce exchanges and portals in the region.

The exchanges and portals, due to rollout this October, are expected to provide 14 countries in the region with cutting-edge electronic procurement solutions.

C1 ME, launched earlier this year with an initial capitalisation of $12 million, has to date attracted major investors from within the region.

"The team members were chosen for their considerable skills and knowledge in the '.com' arena," said chairman Prince Mohammed K A Al Faisal.

Anthony Clarke joins the team as global alliance director; George Edwards as chief operating officer and new business development director; Denis Roe as chief financial officer; and Ray Riley as sales manager.

Based out of Dubai, UAE, C1 ME covers a number of countries in the region including: Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, Turkey, UAE and Yemen.

Meanwhile, C1 ME has joined hands with MidEastOnLine (MEOL), a leading deliverer of Internet-based applications and services through a portal for B2B commerce and trade throughout the Middle East.

"Working with MEOL, we will provide a two-way, real-time business-to-business horizontal marketplace that consolidates inquiries, requests for proposal, and orders into a central system that is shared by all businesses participating in the exchange of goods and services," says Clarke.

"Our mission is to provide clients with an open market over the Internet to increase cost efficiencies for suppliers and buyers," said Anwar Fancy, executive board director, MEOL.