Dozen of deals in May incl. an SCD Advisory transaction

2. Fintech provider BidFin acquired by humm

Australian-based fintech provider BidFin has been acquired by diversified non-bank financial services institution humm group. First established in 2017 by former head of Microsoft Financing Asia Pacific Ross Simon as its CEO, BidFin’s focus is on driving and enabling sales for technology suppliers with the provisioning of payment solutions. BidFin employees will be transitioning to the new ownership and will continue to operate as a stand-alone business. Meanwhile, humm was founded in 1991 and offers business financing products, credit cards and point-of-sale finance plans, with offices in Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, Canada and the UK.

3. Zettagrid acquires Adisyn’s VMware cloud assets

Zettagrid claimed that the deal would help it achieve “significant” growth in Asia Pacific (APAC) and is its nineth asset acquisition of cloud and networking assets since opening in 2010. It also claimed the business formerly known as DC Two has a unique cloud footprint in Darwin, which will be upgraded and turned into its sixth Australian availability zone alongside those in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide.

4. Melbourne creative assets firm Envato acquired by Shutterstock

Melbourne-based creative assets firm Envato, founded by Australian rich listers Cyan and Collis Ta’eed, has announced it will be acquired by royalty-free image website Shutterstock (NYSE: SSTK) in an all-cash deal worth US$245 million ($372 million). Founded in 2006 by the husband-and-wife duo, Envato allows users to access creative assets like stock photos, graphic design templates, audio and fonts, as well as WordPress themes and codes. The tech firm also operates an unlimited subscription service called Envato Elements, which offers unlimited downloads of stock videos, royalty-free music, photos, and graphics, as well as a web-based product mockup and design tool called PlaceIt, and free stock photography and video asset sites Reshot and Mixkit. Clients on the company roster include tech and retail giants like Netflix, Google, Microsoft, Adobe, Nike, and Walmart.

5. Adamantem pips IPH to the post with takeover deal for QANTM Intellectual Property

QANTM, which owns patent law firms Davies Collison Cave (DCC) and FPA Patent Attorneys as well as AI-powered trademark legal tech company Sortify.tm, has been the target of a bidding war since February. The battle for QANTM started with UK-based intellectual property group Rouse International before Adamantem came into the equation the following month, and earlier this week IPH threw its hat in the ring in a repeat of a 2018 tilt. At the time IPH’s predominantly scrip-based offer was worth $265 million, representing an $11 million premium to anything else that was on the table at the time. But as is the way with takeover offers involving stock, fluctuations in the buyer’s share price can have significant implications for value. Today QANTM announced it had entered a binding scheme implementation deed (SID) with an entity owned by Adamantem to buy all shares for $1.817 each, valuing the business just higher than IPH’s proposal. The deal is already supported by shareholders representing 19 per cent of QANTM shares on issue from principals working in QANTM’s businesses.

6. Sydney’s TeleResult acquires cloud consultancy CDRU

Australian telecommunications services firm TeleResult has acquired Sydney-based cloud implementation and IT financial management consultancy CDRU. Founded in 2001, CDRU offers services covering networking, infrastructure, XaaS, service integration and management, modern workplace solutions, service desk solutions, as well as IoT and OT. Sydney-based TeleResult offers services including telecommunications expense management, endpoint security, mobile app development and enterprise mobility management.

7. Accenture set to buy Partners in Performance

Consulting firm Accenture is set to acquire mid-sized operational consultancy Performance in Partners, in a buyout that is betting on increased demand for cost-out advisory amid an uncertain economic environment. Helmed by founder Skipp Williamson, previously named one of The Australian Financial Review’s most powerful consultants, the acquisition is the most significant in the Australian market since EY swallowed boutique strategy outfit Port Jackson Partners in 2020. The major consulting firms are serial acquirers of boutique competitors, with an eventual buyout built into the strategy of many independent firms founded by big firm alumni. The terms of the deal, which is expected to be finalised in June, were not disclosed. In 2019, the firm earned about $120 million in fees and any sale price is typically multiples of this amount.

8. Gallagher boosts Australia presence with HICA acquisition

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has expanded its footprint in the Australian market by acquiring Melbourne-based Health Insurance Consultants Australia (HICA). However, the financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Established over three decades ago, HICA has been providing insurance brokerage and consultancy services to a diverse clientele, including corporate entities, small and medium-sized enterprises, and professional groups and associations throughout Australia. Following the acquisition, the founding members of HICA, Suzanne Still and Jethro Still, along with their team, will continue operating out of their current premises. They will now report to Graham Campbell, who is at the helm of Gallagher’s employee benefits and HR consulting operations in the region.

9. Aptella acquires two Synergy Group business units

Australian firm Aptella (formerly Position Partners) has expanded its reach within Australia and New Zealand by acquiring Synergy Group’s positioning, rental and equipment businesses in New Zealand and Synergy PaveSmart in Australia. The agreement makes Aptella the sole distributor for Topcon construction and surveying systems across Australia and New Zealand and extends the company’s road and infrastructure portfolio to include paving consulting services. Synergy PaveSmart is a Brisbane-headquartered paving and asphalt consultancy that offers end-to-end paving technology solutions.

10. Mott MacDonald buys Australia’s Merz Consulting

UK-headquartered engineering consultancy Mott MacDonald has acquired Australian engineering and energy consultancy Merz Consulting. Merz specialises in power distribution, transmission-and-generation design, and project delivery. Mott MacDonald said it has a strong reputation among policy makers, network utilities, EPC contractors and clients in mining and industry, and that it would help them win business in Australia, New Zealand, and the Asia Pacific region. Mott MacDonald’s managing director for Australia Frances Badelow said the acquisition “brings specialised capabilities and trusted client relationships in the West Australian energy sector to our business”.

11. Comms agency Ethnolink formally acquires translation agency, Language Professionals

Ethnolink, Australia’s largest multicultural communications agency, has acquired Language Professionals, a leading translation agency based in Sydney with a history spanning 35 years. Language Professionals, led by highly regarded industry professionals Max Doerfler and Françoise Le Cossec, has built an extensive reputation servicing government and corporate clients. Ethnolink, headquartered in Melbourne, with offices in Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide, and Perth, sees this acquisition as a move to further turbocharge its growth in the Sydney market. Ethnolink is also Australia’s only multicultural communications agency with ISO Certification for Translation Services (ISO-17100). Through this acquisition, Ethnolink now has over 50 full-time staff, making it the largest specialist multicultural communications agency in Australia.

12. QPC Australia acquires HyperSpike for CX play

Contact centre service provider QPC Australia has acquired managed service provider (MSP) HyperSpike to help bolster its customer experience (CX) solutions suite. QPC was founded in 1993 and specialises in enterprise-grade voice and data services through wholesale arrangements with carriers and cloud exchanges. Meanwhile, HyperSpike was founded in 1997 and offers communications, data centre, cloud migration and management and other services. Acquired for an unknown sum, a QPC spokesperson said it was “very favourable to all parties”. The acquisition follows over five years of partnership between the two businesses and will see the HyperSpike brand and employees remain including managing director, Kelvin Khoo.