Accel-KKR acquires SaaS company GPS Insight, Quadient acquires fintech company Beanworks, and Global Payments acquires real estate payment solutions company Zego in this record year for M&A. 2021 continues to be very busy for mergers and acquisitions in fintech, payments, and SaaS.
GPS Insight acquired by Accel-KKR
GPS Insight, a SaaS company founded in 2004, is a leader in fleet management software that allows companies to monitor and organize their operating vehicles. Its features include GPS tracking, field service management, and a smart camera solution. CEO and CTO Gary Fitzgerald, with over 20 years in technology architecture and prior leadership roles at GE and Allstate, has driven 25% growth over the last five years. Fleet management software is a hot area, and GPS Insight competes with Verizon Connect, Freshdesk, and Geopointe at a lower price point and broader vehicle coverage.
On May 24th, 2021, Accel-KKR, a private equity firm specializing in mid-market software, acquired GPS Insight and merged it with portfolio companies InSight Mobile Data and Rhino Fleet Tracking to create an end-to-end platform for fleet management, field services, and GPS tracking. The combined businesses serve over 11,000 accounts across 30-plus industries and more than 225,000 vehicles in an industry projected to reach $34 billion.
Quadient acquires Beanworks
On March 23rd, Quadient, an international company specializing in mailing equipment, business process automation, and customer experience management, announced its acquisition of Beanworks, a fintech specializing in SaaS accounts payable automation. Quadient, founded in 1924 and headquartered in France with around 6,000 employees, serves 500,000 customers and generates approximately $1.14 billion in revenue annually, led by CEO Geoffrey Godet. Beanworks, created in 2012 in Canada, has a cloud platform that cuts invoice processing costs by up to 80% and saw over 70% revenue growth in 2020, led by CEO Catherine Dahl. Quadient acquired 96% of Beanworks for a little over 70 million euros ($83 million), funded entirely with cash reserves, completing its end-to-end cloud-based business communications vision following its YayPay acquisition.
Global Payments acquires Zego, powered by PayLease
Global Payments announced on May 4, 2021 plans to acquire Zego, completed June 10, 2021. Global Payments, a Fortune 500 e-commerce and payment solutions provider headquartered in Atlanta with over 24,000 employees across nearly 40 countries, is led by CEO Jeffery S. Sloan. Zego, powered by PayLease and headquartered in San Diego, is a leading provider of real estate software that modernizes the resident experience and includes rent-collection payment services, serving over 6,000 residential real estate firms and more than 12 million units, led by CEO Dirk Wakeham. The acquisition is valued at $925 million (effectively $830 million including a tax asset), funded with cash and an existing credit line, giving Global Payments an entry into the real estate space and Zego access to global reach.
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Mergers and acquisitions have become extremely active recently. Many private equity groups and industry strategics supplement their own M&A teams by finding firms that specialize in deal sourcing and origination, such as 733Park, backed by valuable experience and relationship building.
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