[November 2017]
LDC sells Giacom to Livingbridge after 18-month hold
Livingbridge has acquired cloud software business Giacom from LDC after 18 month hold
21st November 2017
LDC backed Hull-based Giacom little over a year ago [click here for Real Deals article] and will reinvest for a minority stake.
“Following a year of rapid growth which saw us double our revenues, we believe that now is the right time to secure new financial backing and accelerate our growth plans,” said Giacom chief executive Mike Wardell.
Giacom offers cloud services to the SME market via information technology consultants (ITCs) and is used by more than 4,000 such firms.
With the new investment Giacom intends to increase cross-selling and pursue bolt-on acquisitions.
Simon Braham and Jonathan Bell led the deal for LDC from its Manchester office.
Richard Hall led the CloudOrigin team providing Vendor Technology and Operational Due Diligence for Giacom – “We were delighted to return to Giacom and witness the growth in the operation and capabilities since we first advised LDC on their original investment. From their early focus on email services provision, Giacom have not only grown to become one of the flagship Microsoft Tier-2 Cloud Solutions Providers in Europe, but evolved a comprehensive Cloud Market strategy to enable ITCs to offer a range of compelling SaaS solutions to their clients”.
Livingbridge made the investment from its sixth flagship fund. It is its fourth deal in the TMT sector so far this year.
Commenting on the investment, Matthew Caffrey, Livingbridge, said: “We are very excited to be working with Mike and the team during the next phase of Giacom’s growth. The business is extremely well positioned to capitalise on a significant market opportunity underpinned by SMEs increasingly migrating their applications and infrastructure into the cloud. Giacom’s marketplace platform is well placed to continue to disrupt the market and drive growth.”
GCA Altium, Pinsent Masons and KPMG’s debt advisory group advised Livingbridge. KPMG and Gately advised LDC and management. TLT advised Giacom founder Nick Marshall.
For more details on the deal from Livingbridge news site click here