Berkshire Partners has acquired a majority stake in Masergy Communications, global service provider offering hybrid networking, managed security, cloud communications and SD-WAN solutions to midsize and large enterprises. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"We think Berkshire Partners is the ideal partner as we embark upon the next chapter of our growth strategy," said Chris MacFarland, chairman and CEO of Masergy, in a prepared statement. "Berkshire brings the industry expertise required to help us fulfill our vision."
Masergy, based in Plano, Texas, claims to be the largest independent MSP in the world. The company also claims to own and operate the largest independent Software Defined Platform in the world.
Masergy Annual Revenues, SD-WAN Focus
ChannelE2E hasn't been able to independently confirm those financial claims, but published reports point to the company's strong track record for growth. Masergy's 2015 revenues were $254.4 million, a 64 percent compound annual growth rate (CAGR), according to the 2016 Inc. 500 list.
Masergy is one of the first MSPs to push hard into the emerging market for Software Defined Wide Area Networking (SD-WAN). The company launched a managed SD-WAN service in September 2016. The company says the SD-WAN approach offers security, application performance and price performance benefits across such areas as:
- Dynamic Path Control and Adaptive Forward Error Correction
- Automatic IP-VPN tunnels with AES 256 encryption
- Dynamic Policy-based Application Routing
- Centralized Policy and Configuration Management
Masergy Channel Partners, Owner
Masergy also works closely with a channel partners to bolster its hybrid networking, managed security and cloud solutions.
Now, Masergy also has a new majority owner. Berkshire Partners, a Boston-based investment firm, has made over 115 investments since its founding in 1986 and has raised nine private equity funds with more than $16 billion in aggregate capital commitments.
To track all VAR, MSP and CSP acquisitions/mergers, check the ChannelE2E Milestones section each day for updates.
