Information technology (IT) services and solutions provider Ness Technologies (Nasdaq: NSTC) today announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Innova Solutions (OLAS Software Solutions). Innova is a privately held provider of IT services and solutions based in the US and India. The acquisition is expected to provide synergies with Ness' current operations in the US and India.
The purchase price in the all cash transaction is $25 million, of which $10 million will be paid over the next two years based on the achievement of certain performance goals.
Ness stated that the acquisition is expected to be accretive to 2006 earnings per share.
Innova is an IT services provider and system integrator offering a portfolio of offshore and on-site IT services and solutions, with a focus on financial services, which is also a core strength and strategic growth area for Ness. Innova is headquartered in Santa Clara, California, with the great majority of its personnel in Hyderabad, India. Innova has over 700 employees, mainly in India.
Innova's clients include Franklin Templeton, Standard & Poor's, Finaplex Inc., ING Investment Management, Sanofi-Aventis, Kaiser Permanente, Intuit, PayPal, and others.
Following the acquisition, the Hyderabad delivery center will become Ness' third major delivery center in India, complementing Ness' existing delivery centers in Bangalore and Mumbai. Upon completion of the acquisition, Innova will change its name to Ness Financial and Business Innovation Services.
Innova president and COO Rajkumar Velagapudi, will continue in his current role, and Innova's current management team will continue to manage the existing operations. Velagapudi will report to Ness Technologies president and CEO Raviv Zoller.
Zoller said, "The financial services industry represents one of the biggest global opportunities for Ness and the acquisition of Innova will further position us to meet the demands of this market. We have been following Innova for the past year and we are very impressed with the capabilities of its management team."
Specializing in outsourcing and offshore, systems integration and application development, software and consulting, and quality assurance and training, Ness Technologies serves a blue-chip client base of over 500 public- and private-sector customers. With over 5,900 employees, Ness maintains operations in 16 countries across North America, Europe and Asia, and more than 100 alliances and partnerships around the world.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes.co.il - on Monday, February 06, 2006