Dozen deals in Oct. in the services space - One from SCD

2. Jonas Software Acquires Corum Health

Jonas Software is pleased to announce the acquisition of Corum Health.  Corum Health is a leading provider of innovative pharmacy management software for pharmacies across Australia. Corum Health offers over ten solutions for pharmacy businesses, including solutions that streamline workflows and increase profitability, all while safeguarding and securing each pharmacy’s confidential medical data. Corum Health is a milestone acquisition for Jonas Software, being its first step into the pharmacy management vertical. This acquisition serves as a great platform for further expansion in this industry, with the cornerstone being Corum Health as an industry innovator. Jonas Software operates over 140+ independently managed software brands around the world, providing them with the strategic guidance and financial security required to be leaders in their respective markets. From its roots formed in the construction and club management markets, Jonas Software’s reach has grown extensively within the health, fitness, membership, hospitality, and industrial verticals. Today, Jonas Software is proud to supply industry-leading enterprise management software and related services to more than 80,000 customers in over 40+ vertical markets.

3. Boutique advisory Quay Associates joins Moore in Perth

Boutique suburban advisory Quay Associates has joined accounting and consulting firm Moore’s Perth office. The Western Australian branch of accounting and consulting network Moore has welcomed the team from boutique tax and advisory firm Quay Associates Chartered Accountants into its mix, including managing partner Brett Beaver and business services director Laura Seabrooke. The pair established Quay Associates in Ardross in Perth after departing DFK Gooding Partners in 2018. In line with its southern suburbs location outside of the CBD, the firm brings a local community and family focus to its practice (both Beaver and Seabrooke are local to the area), providing personalised accounting, taxation, self-managed superannuation funds and business advisory services to an established clientele of small to medium enterprises, family businesses, and high net worth individuals.

4. Lucidity strengthens global growth plans by joining Ideagen

Melbourne-headquartered software company, Lucidity Software Pty Ltd has today boosted its growth ambitions by agreeing to become part of global regulatory software specialists, Ideagen.  It joins Ideagen CompliSpace and Ideagen OnePlace Solutions, two Australian businesses already part of Ideagen (having joined in 2021 and May 2023, respectively) and takes their investment into Australian-based software businesses to around AU$150m. It’s also Ideagen’s third health and safety solution in 12 months, following the acquisition of Ideagen DevonWay last month and Ideagen EHS (formerly ProcessMAP) in 2022, as the UK-headquartered business proactively boosts its EHS and asset management capabilities.

5. Vitura Health gains telehealth foothold through $25m Doctors on Demand acquisition

Medicinal cannabis group Vitura Health (ASX: VIT) has acquired the privately owned telehealth services provider Doctors on Demand for $25 million, with the deal aimed at driving Vitura’s ambitions of becoming a diversified digital health outfit. The cash-and-scrip buyout of the Brisbane-based Doctors on Demand is expected to be completed on 26 October, bringing to Vitura a digital platform that services about 280,000 patients a year. Doctors on Demand, which was founded in 2015 by Brisbane pharmacists John Martin and John Neilson, provides telehealth, healthcare and related services to patients through a network of more than 120 medical practitioners via videoconferences. Vitura sees the sector as a critical growth sector with the adoption of telehealth services partly being driven by cost-of-living pressures and the constrained availability of doctors. However, Vitura also says a significant share of revenue for the business comes from service agreements with some of Australia’s largest health insurers and corporates – an area of the business it is planning to grow. Vitura CEO Rodney Cocks describes the acquisition as a ‘significant milestone’ for the company.

6. Emanden Technical Solutions joins Fyfe

Emanden, a leader in project management, construction management, and commissioning execution, brings a team of twenty seasoned professionals. Their experience servicing clients and turnkey contractors spans various sectors, including energy and resources, renewables, power generation, and mining. With offices in Adelaide and Perth, Emanden boasts an experienced team of project managers and electrical, process, and mechanical engineers. Fyfe is an Australian-based professional services firm with over 40 years of experience in engineering, environment, planning, and survey services. With 16 offices and over 465 staff across Australia, Fyfe is committed to delivering value through integration, employing the best people, using the latest integrated technology solutions, and world-class thinking. Always looking for growth opportunities, Fyfe actively seeks potential mergers and acquisitions with firms that align with its values and culture.

7. Telstra Purple expands through $267 million Versent acquisition

Australian telecom giant Telstra has advanced the end-to-end capabilities of its business technology consulting wing through the addition of Melbourne-based cloud specialist Versent. Telstra has snapped up home-grown cloud consultancy Versent for $267 million to further scale its business technology services wing Telstra Purple. The local telcom reportedly outbid Japanese rival NTT after an almost year-long sales process, although the eventual price tag came in much lower than earlier suggestions of a potential $500 million valuation. The deal also includes Vesrsent’s self-serve cloud management platform Stax. Established in Melbourne in 2014 by former NAB employees Thor Essman and James Coxon and one-time Deloitte manager Eddie Smith, Versent has over the past decade grown to a headcount of 500-plus across Australia and its international outlets in Singapore and the United States. Originally an AWS specialist, the company earlier this year expanded its cloud offering through a new partnership with Microsoft, which followed an earlier deal struck with Databricks.

8. Atlassian acquires video messaging platform Loom for $1.5b

In an effort to ramp up its software offering for hybrid workplaces, Australian-founded tech giant Atlassian Corporation (NASDAQ: TEAM) has announced it has acquired video messaging platform Loom for US$975 million ($1.5 billion). Founded in 2016 by Joe Thomas and Vinay Hiremath, San Francisco-based Loom allows users to simultaneously record their desktop screen, camera, and microphone. The platform also offers AI-powered video editing tools that generate titles, summaries, chapters, tasks and can remove silence or filler words. The buyout will see Loom’s features integrated into Atlassian’s platform, allowing customers to transition between video, video transcripts, summaries, documents, and other workflows.

9. Totara has been divested to Tenzing

Founded in New Zealand, Totara has emerged as a leading provider of highly configurable learning, engagement, and performance management software to enterprises worldwide. At the core of its offerings is the Totara Talent Experience Platform (TXP), an all-encompassing solution tailored to meet the mission critical learning and performance needs of workplaces. TXP supports an extensive user base of 20m individuals across 140 countries and has garnered the trust of some of the world’s largest corporations, including USDA, the NHS, Diageo, Sony, Toyota, and Amazon Alexa. In June 2020, Five V acquired a majority interest in Totara, partnering with its Founder, Richard Wyles to embark on the next stage of Totara’s growth. Since then, Totara has rapidly scaled, growing at a 30% CAGR, establishing itself as a globally recognised platform. This success has been supported by the contributions of an excellent global management team and the continuous investments in delivering to market an award-winning product portfolio. Today, Totara is operated by a team of over 100 professionals across offices spanning the UK (HQ), New Zealand, and the USA.

10. MinterEllison Consulting buys education specialist Wells Advisory

Law firm MinterEllison has boosted its Consulting business with the acquisition of Wells Advisory. The bolt-on adds a twenty-person team to MinterEllison Consulting, lifting its headcount to over 120 consultants and staff. A number of team members will join MinterEllison Consulting’s business in the United Kingdom. Established in 2016, Wells Advisory is a management consulting firm dedicated to the higher education sector. The firm specialises in strategy, regulation, research commercialisation, and governance services. In Australia, Wells Advisory works with clients including the Group of Eight (Australia’s leading research-intensive universities), the Regional Universities Network, regulators, TAFEs, government and many private providers of higher education and vocational education services. In the United Kingdom, the team works mainly with universities and higher education providers.

11. Tesserent acquires Beyond Binary for $7M

Tesserent is to acquire Brisbane-based attack simulation provider Beyond Binary for $7 million. Founded by former Rapid7 talent OJ Reeves, Beyond Binary provides penetration testing, red team engagements, adversary and attack simulation plus associated security consulting services. The company has operated since 2010 and aims to help customers “understand the nature of the technology landscape, improve their defensive capability and correctly identify the elements of their security strategy that need attention”. Publicly listed Tesserent said the $7 million value will be paid in tranches and subject to standard adjustments. The acquisition is expected to close later this month. The news follows an offer from Thales Australia to acquire all of Tesserent’s shares for A$176 million. Announced in June, the deal, if cleared, will see Tesserent retain its brand but add “Cyber Solutions by Thales”.

12. Pangolin Associates joins Viridios Group

Pangolin Associates is pleased to announce that the climate change services consultancy is now part of the Viridios Group. Viridios Group is a global carbon credit origination, capital markets, asset management business. The Group offers a unique SaaS pricing and data platform covering the Voluntary Carbon Market (VCM) and compliance markets. Pangolin Associates will remain a standalone business under the Viridios umbrella while contributing a suite of interconnected strategic services. The Viridios investment into Pangolin Associates comes at an opportune time as pressure to demonstrate environmental responsibility surges in the Australian business community. Expectations from stakeholders, customers, supply chains and the public at large are forcing organisations to build credible climate policies and embed sustainability measures into every part of the business.