ACA Group, an MSP that offers governance, risk and compliance (GRC) solutions to financial services customers, has acquired Focus 1 Associates. ACA gains a regulatory compliance firm that supports wealth management, private equity, hedge fund, and diversified financial services customers. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
This is technology M&A deal number 802 that ChannelE2E has covered so far in 2022. See more than 2,000 technology M&A deals involving MSPs, MSSPs & IT service providers listed here.
ACA Group and Focus 1: M&A Expands Financial Services Compliance Capabilities
Focus 1, founded in 2005, is based in Medford, Oregon. The company has 13 employees listed on LinkedIn. Key areas of expertise include SEC compliance consulting; annual compliance reviews; third-party compliance reviews; and more. Focus 1 serves over 100 clients in the United States and the United Kingdom, the seller said.
ACA Group, founded in 2002, is based in New York, New York. The company, backed by mid-market private equity firm Genstar Capital, had more than 1,250 employees serving more than 6,300 customers as of May 2022. ACA's service catalog spans Brexit consulting; compliance-oriented consulting and managed services; cybersecurity, risk management and privacy capabilities; regulatory hosting and more.
This ACA Group's second M&A deal in recent months. In a far larger deal, ACA and Foreside Financial Group merged in May 2022 to become one of the largest providers of tech-enabled GRC solutions globally.
ACA Group Acquires Focus 1: Executive Perspectives
In a prepared statement about the latest deal, Tobin S. Cochran, managing member and president at Focus 1 Associates, said:
“In an increasingly compliance-driven world, having access to specialized expertise across all areas of compliance is important to our clients. We’re thrilled to join with ACA, as we have a longtime relationship and have much respect for their culture of high-quality advisory services and technology as the market leader in the space. We’re confident that ACA will help us best serve the growing needs of our clients and are excited to provide them a truly unique offering in GRC.”
Added Shvetank Shah, CEO of ACA Group:
“Following our merger with Foreside, we’re focused on acquiring great companies like Focus 1 as we become the platform of choice for clients. Focus 1’s team and clients will benefit from our industry-leading managed services and Compliance Alpha technology solutions.”
