Investcorp-backed Calligo buys UK-based IT firm Network Integrity Services

Bahrain-based asset manager Investcorp says it portfolio firm Calligo Holdings has bought a UK-based IT specialist firm. Courtesy Investcorp

Calligo Holdings, a data services company owned by Bahrain-based alternative asset manager Investcorp, bought UK-based information technology specialist Network Integrity Services.

Calligo’s acquisition of NIS is its ninth in three years and fourth in 2020, as it continues to expand its footprint and consolidate its position in the managed data services market, Investcorp said in a statement on Wednesday. It did not disclose the financial details of the deal.

The acquisition of NIS – which has offices in Manchester, Birmingham, Leicester and Hemel Hempstead – will help Calligo expand its presence in the UK. The deal will also allow Calligo to offer enhanced services to its customers throughout Europe and North America and will support its portfolio of managed data services across markets.

“This latest acquisition reinforces our view that Calligo’s compelling offering and experienced management team will continue to deliver both organic and inorganic growth opportunities,” Gilbert Kamieniecky, managing director and head of Investcorp’s private equity technology business, said.

“We are delighted with how … [the company] continue[s] to identify complementary acquisition targets in the current environment.”

Investcorp Technology Partners, via Investcorp Technology Fund IV, invested in US-based Calligo in 2016 and has since channelled more than $20 million into the company to help accelerate its product innovation and international expansion plans, both organically and through strategic add-on acquisitions.

Calligo offers services that optimise and protect data including “privacy by design” machine learning services and tools.

“Calligo continues to deliver the growth opportunities that attracted Investcorp to the business in 2016. The deep tech market expertise … [and] efforts of the Calligo management team to expand the business has yielded an impressive year of acquisition-led growth,” Tarek Al Mahjoub, head of UAE and Oman for Investcorp’s private wealth, said.

Investcorp has been expanding its tech portfolio in recent months by investing in software, data analytics, cyber security and FinTech firms.

Impero, a software firm owned by Investcorp, last week bought its competitor Netop for an undisclosed sum. The purchase from Consolidated Holdings will increase Impero’s scale and presence in the US and has the potential to meaningfully increase recurring revenue, Investcorp said in a January 6 statement.

Investcorp Technology Partners’ recent investments include Avira, a multinational cybersecurity software firm; Contentserv, a product information management software provider; Ubisense, an enterprise software and sensor platform; Softgarden, an HR software provider; and Ageras, an online marketplace matching smaller businesses with service providers.

Investcorp, which counts Abu Dhabi's Mubadala Investment Company as its biggest shareholder, had $32.2 billion of assets under management as of June 30, a 15 per cent year-on-year increase.

Last month, the company entered into a partnership with New York's Centre Lane Partners to increase private equity and private credit investments into mid-market companies in North America.