In a move to bolster its ERP offering and accelerate its own growth, Sapphire Systems has acquired In Cloud Solutions, an SAP Business ByDesign partner, for an undisclosed amount.
This is technology M&A deal number 173 that ChannelE2E has covered so far in 2021. See all technology M&A deals for 2021 and 2020 listed here.
Sapphire will make use of In Cloud’s portfolio of SAP-aligned products and its team of employees to grow its SAP Business ByDesign practice, according to the company.
Founded in 1993 and backed by private equity firm Horizon Capital, this is Sapphire’s third deal of 2021, following the recent acquisitions of Pioneer B1 and ITOM Solution. Each of these deals form part of the provider’s strategy to fast-track growth both organically and through acquisition.
Sapphire specializes in enterprise software applications management in the enterprise resource planning (ERP) market. Headquartered in London, England, the company has 1,000 customers worldwide. Sapphire has additional sales, services and development locations throughout the United Kingdom, United States, Latin America and Asia.
Sapphire Acquires In Cloud Solutions: An Accelerated Growth Strategy
Ian Caswell, CEO, Sapphire Systems, commented on the deal:
"2021 has got off to an exceptionally busy start for us and we're incredibly excited to announce our third acquisition of the year, SAP Business ByDesign specialist, InCloud Solutions. As part of the accelerated growth strategy we announced last year, this latest acquisition will strengthen and expand our SAP practice, bringing further expertise and experience to our growing client base."
Bob Atkinson, managing director, In Cloud Solutions, added:
"SAP Business ByDesign is a market-leading native cloud-specific ERP solution perfectly aligned to the digital economy we're fast becoming accustomed to. We are delighted to become part of the Sapphire team; we slot perfectly into their culture, strategy and vision of the future as we strive to help our clients accelerate their shift away from current processes towards a digitally operated and cohesive format."
Sapphire’s PE Backing
This string of recent deals comes roughly one year after Horizon Capital invested in Sapphire Systems. That investment gave Sapphire the capital to make investments, Horizon Capital Partner Luke Kingston said in January 2020. Sapphire had about 250 employees at the time of the Horizon Capital investment.
M&A activity in the SAP partner ecosystem has been strong. Here’s a list of SAP-focused partner mergers and acquisitions.
