AHEAD, backed by private equity firms Centerbridge Partners LP and Berkshire Partners, is acquiring technology solution providers and MSPs RoundTower Technologies and Kovarus. Financial terms of the deals were not disclosed.
These are M&A deals number 382 and 383 that ChannelE2E have covered so far in 2020. See the full M&A deal list here.
The deals apparently will boost AHEAD annual revenue by about $800 million, and AHEAD expects to generate about $2.1 billion in annual gross revenue. (AHEAD earlier this year disclosed revenues of about $1.3 billion.) The combined company will have more than 1,000 employees. Profit figures were not disclosed.
AHEAD Acquires RoundTower, Kovarus: Technology Solutions Provider Details
Additional deal highlights include:
- RoundTower of Cincinnati, Ohio, positions itself as "an elite systems integrator" with more than 1,500 clients. The company has more than 400 employees and over 250 enterprise and commercial technology partners. RoundTower itself has M&A expertise, acquiring Par4, CAS, and Mainstream Security. Key areas of expertise include Data Cloud Automation and ServiceNow. RoundTower strengthens AHEAD’s presence in the eastern half of the U.S., particularly in Ohio, New England, Florida, North Carolina and South Carolina.
- Kovarus of San Ramon, Calif., adds presence in Arizona, California, Colorado, Oregon and Washington, and brings high-profile Silicon Valley clients into the AHEAD account base, the buyer says. Kovarus also positions itself as a systems integrator. Recent honors include Dell Technologies North America Partner of the Year for 2020. Other honors have involved Red Hat, Puppet and VMware.
- All three firms offer "robust" managed services, to be combined into a more differentiated portfolio within AHEAD, the buyer asserts. Monthly recurring revenue (MRR) figures were not disclosed.
The deals surface only a few weeks after Centerbridge and Berkshire Partners confirmed the AHEAD acquisition.
AHEAD Acquires RoundTower, Kovarus: MSP Executive Perspectives
In a prepared statement about the deals, Daniel Adamany, CEO of AHEAD, said:
“The addition of RoundTower and Kovarus to the AHEAD team solidifies our position as the premier provider of digital infrastructure and modern applications in the U.S. Together, we’ll better meet the end-to-end needs of our enterprise clients, from strategic consulting to complex implementations to managed services for ongoing operations—all while maintaining the deep platform expertise on which we were founded.”
Added Stephen West, managing partner at RoundTower:
“With similar backgrounds and business models, this partnership has been a long time coming. Joining forces with AHEAD and Kovarus will significantly elevate the level of service available to our clients and further separate us from the competition.”
Concluded Peter Castaldi, principal and co-founder of Kovarus:
“Culture makes all the difference when it comes to combining companies. Our three firms share similar values and purpose, as well as deep commitments to client success. We look forward to bringing a larger portfolio of services to help our customers on their digital transformation journeys.”
AHEAD: Multiple Acquisitions
AHEAD has been busy on the acquisition front. Over the past year or so, the company:
- acquiring Link Solutions in July 2019;
- merged with Data Blue while acquiring Sovereign Systems in late 2019; and
- acquired Platform Consulting Group in early 2020.
The Kovarus, RoundTower and Centerbridge transactions are expected to close simultaneously by the end of October 2020, AHEAD indicated.
