Alantra advises the shareholders of Giacom on the sale of the business to Digital Wholesale Solutions, a division of Daisy Group
SECTORTechnology
ServiceM&A
Alantra, the independent global mid-market investment banking, alternative asset management and credit portfolio advisory firm, has advised the shareholders of Giacom, a specialist cloud services provider, on the sale of the business to a division of Daisy group, Digital Wholesale Solutions.
Founded in Hull, UK in 1999, Giacom is the UK’s largest independent cloud portal, serving over 70,000 end-user SMEs through a highly specialised and large-scale distribution platform. It offers a one-stop platform for all the cloud software, infrastructure and IT services that Information Technology Consultants (ITC) might require to transition their SME clients into public or private cloud environments and then manage them on an ongoing basis. The transaction marks a successful exit for Livingbridge, as well as an exit for minority shareholder LDC, which originally invested in Giacom in 2016.
Led by CEO Mike Wardell, Giacom has been transformed into a Cloud Marketplace and indirect cloud software provider, capitalising on the industry shift towards cloud-based solutions. This has enabled the business to deliver phenomenal revenue growth over the last four years, growing at a CAGR of more than 50%. Giacom has gained recognition through numerous awards, having recently been announced as Fastest Growing Business in Yorkshire by Business Insider as well as being listed in the Sunday Times Tech Track 100 for four consecutive years. It has continued delivering this growth throughout the COVID-19 pandemic and has just passed the milestone of one million product licenses sold.
The Alantra team comprised James Chapman-Andrews, Oliver Norman, Jamie Dickson, Milan Vashi and Joe Carpenter.
James Chapman-Andrews, Partner and UK Head of Technology at Alantra, said: “We are delighted to have advised the shareholders of Giacom on the sale of the business to Digital Wholesale Solutions. Giacom is a unique market leader in providing cloud software and services to the UK SME market and this combination with Digital Wholesale Solutions is a huge step towards the true convergence of the provision of communications and IT services to the UK SME market. The combined business is perfectly positioned to capitalise on the acceleration to cloud services and should be one of the most accretive deals we will see in the market for some time.”
Mike Wardell, CEO of Giacom, said: “Alantra’s experience in ICT and specifically within the platforms space, plus their ongoing relationship with Livingbridge made them a standout choice to advise us on this transaction. James and his team were extremely knowledgeable of our business and their guidance and tireless input throughout the process, particularly in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, helped ensure a positive outcome for all parties involved. It was a pleasure to work with all of the team.”
The sale of Giacom demonstrates Alantra’s strong specialism in the cloud services and communications market and is our sixth transaction in this space in 2020, having advised Graphite Capital on its £90m acquisition of Babble, Sol-Tec on its sale to IT Lab, Bowmark Capital on its investment in Focus Group, Livingbridge on its reinvestment in M247, and MML Capital on its investment into Arrow.
