)
Digital seems to be the flavor of the season. After similar moves by larger peers, mid-sized information technology services company Mindtree has announced two acquisitions in the space, spending Rs 425 crore. These are expected to expand the company’s offerings in the digital space, which it claims accounts for 34 per cent of its overall revenues.
The company will acquire British technology consultancy Bluefin Solutions and US-based analytics firm Relational Solutions. For Bluefin, which employs 170 consultants, Mindtree would pay £42.3 million (Rs 423 crore), with an initial payout of £34 million (Rs 340 crore) in cash and the rest on performance-based deliverables spread over three years. The UK-headquartered company presently has a revenue run-rate of £29 million (Rs 287 crore). The acquisition will help Mindtree gain about 50 clients in US and UK.
Mindtree also said it has signed a deal to acquire US-based Relational Solutions, a provider of analytics for consumer packaged goods retail execution, for $10 million (Rs 63 crore) in cash. The Ohio-headquartered company had reported revenue of $3.2 million in the previous calendar. This buy will help Mindtree acquire analytics capabilities to offer insights on movement of goods such as beverages or chocolate for manufacturers.
“If we look at the investments in digital infrastructure, most of it is in the front-end value chain to give better customer experience in the front end. In the near future, these investments need to be transferred to back-end on the ERP infrastructure,” said Krishnakumar Natarajan, chief executive and managing director of Mindtree.
