Cloud comms provider IMIMobile has bought engagement company Infracast for a maximum of £17million in cash and shares and expects to see a jump in profits as a result of the deal immediately, said one insider.
The deal – involving an initial purchase price of £8.2million, comprising £7.7 million in cash and £500,000 via the issue of 273,614 shares at 175 pence each – will see Infracast, which is a Tier 1 technology partner of Telefonica, add four of the five main UK banks to IMI’s rosta of clients.
Infracast is a Managed Service Provider and Systems Integrator, which builds and delivers strategic mobile customer engagement solutions for enterprise clients. Its solutions are used by global enterprise customers as an integral component of their business processes. Customers include global Banks & Financial institutions, Airlines, Retail, Telco, OTT and media organisations across the UK, EMEA, Latin America and worldwide.
“The acquisition of Infracast helps us strengthen our capabilities and opportunities in the financial services sector, a sector which is profoundly impacted by the shift of consumer behaviour towards digital and mobile technologies. We expect to rapidly integrate the acquisition over the next six months and take advantage of the close synergies in terms of technology, partnerships, client base and the experienced senior management team,” said Chief Executive Officer Jay Patel in a statement.
Infracast is based in Reading and employs 31 staff. In the year to 31 May 2016, the company reported a turnover of £10.4m, gross profit of £3.1m and EBITDA of £400,000.