Birmingham corporate finance firm advises on major technology deal
Birmingham-based corporate finance firm, Transcend Corporate, has advised on a major deal in the UK technology sector.
The Technology team at Transcend, led by partner Steve Bartlett, acted as lead adviser to the shareholders of data communication firm AlwaysON Group in its sale to Cloud Direct, for an undisclosed sum.
Bracknell-based AOG is a £5.5m revenue provider of unified communications (UC), data communication and managed data services to UK headquartered organisations, primarily mid-sized enterprises.
Services include unified communications (UC) and voice services, together with managed Microsoft Exchange and security solutions management, using an in-house core MPLS network. AOG also provides network and connectivity services and application hosting services, including Skype for Business. Managed data services include net backup and recovery services (on-premise and cloud); data archiving; and data storage management.
AOG was owned by private equity firms Foresight Group and Mobeus Equity Partners, together with management and a group of private investors.
Cloud Direct is a provider of cloud-based managed IT service to SMEs, encompassing UC, cloud back- up, disaster recovery, hosted VOIP telephony, Office 365 and cloud hosting and infrastructure.
Commenting on the deal, Martin Peck, executive chairman of AOG, said: “We are delighted to have sold AlwaysON to Cloud Direct. The current investors built AOG up by merging two complimentary IT services business, and having completed this process, the time was right for a new owner to take the business forward.”
Mr Bartlett said: “We are pleased to have helped Foresight, Mobeus and management with their exit from AOG. This is a sector we know well, with a lot of M&A activity. Cloud Direct were an obviously strong fit with AOG and we are sure the business will flourish under their ownership.”
Brett Raynes, CEO of Cloud Direct said: “Since 2003, we’ve been helping organisations grow by migrating them to the cloud – quickly and securely. Moving forward, AOG’s capabilities will be critical to that as we drive better business continuity, people productivity and infrastructure.”
The plan is to slowly integrate the AOG business into the Cloud Direct to support organic growth.
Transcend, which also has an office in Reading, is a mid-market corporate finance advisory firm focusing on transactions in the £4m – £30m value range.
