Wipro said on Thursday it has reached an agreement to buy 22-year-old British tech consultancy firm Capco for $1.45 billion as the major Indian software exporter looks to win customers in Europe and Asia.
The Indian firm, which identifies U.S. as its biggest market, said the two companies share “complimentary business models” and expects the deal to close by the end of June.
London-headquartered Capco’s clients include “many marquee names” in the global financial services industry including “Boards and C-Suites” in the banking, capital markets, wealth and asset management and insurance sectors, the Indian firm said in a filing (PDF) to the stock exchange in the country.
Privately-held firm Capco, which employs about 5,000 consultants and had raised about $80 million from investors 20 years ago, is “widely acknowledged for its deep domain and consulting expertise, risk and regulatory offerings and thought leadership around key industry technology challenges and opportunities. In addition, Capco services clients in the energy and commodities trading sector,” the two firms said in a joint press release.
A slide from Wipro’s stock exchange filing. (Wipro)
“Together, we can deliver high-end consulting and technology transformations, and operations offerings to our clients. Wipro and Capco share complimentary business models and core guiding values, and I am certain that our new Capco colleagues will be proud to call Wipro home,” said Thierry Delaporte, CEO and Managing Director of Wipro, who assumed the top role last year.
Delaporte replaced Abidali Neemuchwala, who led the company for four years and fell short of delivering Wipro’s target of becoming a $15 billion firm by 2020. The company’s revenue at the end of March last year was $8.1 billion.
Under the new leadership, Wipro is increasingly chasing clients in Europe and Asia. The firm last year landed orders from European clean energy firms Fortum and E.On. It has publicly stated that it is also looking to acquire firms.
“Together, we will offer bespoke transformational end-to-end solutions, now powered by innovative technology at scale, to create a new leading partner to the financial services industry. We look forward to leveraging the complementary capabilities and similar cultures of both companies to drive industry change and offer exciting opportunities for both our clients, and our people,” said Lance Levy, CEO of Capco, in a statement.
