Wayside Technology Group has acquired CDF Group Ltd, a UK-based cloud, software and IT distributor and services provider.
This is M&A deal number 464 that ChannelE2E has covered so far in 2020. See the complete M&A deal list here.
The deal was made through Wayside’s Climb division. Under the terms of the agreement, Wayside is acquiring CDF for approximately US$17.4 million. CDF reported approximately $8.9 million in gross profit and $2 million in EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) for its fiscal year ended June 30, 2020.
Wayside Acquires CDF: Microsoft Expertise and Integration
CDF’s public-facing divisions are primarily Grey Matter, a value-added reseller (VAR) that provides cloud, software and technical services, and Sigma Software Distribution, which provides software products to VARs throughout the EMEA (Europe, Middle East, and Africa) region.
Both Sigma and Grey Matter have deep expertise in Microsoft Azure, are Microsoft Gold Partners with nine competencies and hold various direct agreements with Microsoft.
The deal will allow Climb to strengthen its position in the EMEA market, the company said. It will also provide new cross-selling opportunities for Climb’s existing U.S. and Canadian customer base, according to Wayside. The company says it will integrate CDF’s offerings into its Climb division as it seeks to position Climb as a premier specialty technology distributor and service provider.
CDF will bring approximately 125 employees to Wayside, more than 1,000 VARs from its network, and established relationships with notable vendors including Microsoft, Amazon Web Services, Adobe ManageEngine, SAP and more. CDF’s current group CEO, Andrew King, will join Wayside and lead its European operations as president and general manager of EMEA, the company announced.
Wayside Acquires CDF: A Strategic Opportunity
Dale Foster, CEO of Wayside, commented on the deal:
“By utilizing CDF’s existing cloud solutions infrastructure, we believe that our cloud offerings are better positioned to meet the growing needs of our vendor and VAR partners in both EMEA and North America. Further, with the added support of CDF’s professional services division CloudKnowHow, we can make cloud integration seamless for our clients and further build out our team’s technical expertise. This presents a long-term strategic opportunity for us to expand into more value-added services that can deepen our partnership with customers.”
Andrew King added:
“Wayside’s extensive vendor network and commitment to developing emerging technology brands made them an ideal partner for CDF given our limited overlap in geographies as well as vendor and VAR relationships. In addition, CDF’s software and cloud platform expertise will enable us to provide Wayside’s customers with end-to-end cloud solutions and support, from cloud adoption to migration to optimization. We look forward to integrating with Wayside and building an even stronger cloud marketplace and vendor network as a combined company.”
Wayside Background
Headquartered in Eatontown, New Jersey, Wayside is an international technology channel company that markets software, hardware and services – directly and through resellers – to software development and information technology professionals, according to its website.
Wayside acquired Canadian technology distributor Interwork Technologies for an undisclosed sum in April 2020.
