LaPenta rings in L1's new identity

NEW YORK, N.Y.--Robert LaPenta will ring the New York Stock Exchange bell on Aug. 30, marking the first day of trading on this exchange for his biometrics technology company, L1 Identity Solutions. The company's ticker symbol will be ID. LaPenta is chief executive officer of the new company, which is the result of a merger, expected to be completed Aug. 29, between Viisage Technology and Identix Inc. LaPenta has been working over the past year to bring together different biometrics companies under one umbrella. In addition to this merger, the company recently acquired Iridian, the company that initially developed and commercialized iris recognition technology. Viisage and Identix will be traded on the NASDAQ exchange until the opening of business on Aug. 30. L1 Identity Solutions provides fingerprint, facial and skin biometric technologies, systems and critical system components for large-scale ID management programs. Its markets include government, law enforcement, gaming, finance, travel and transportation.