Channel investors

AppRiver founders Mike Murdoch (pictured) & Joel Smith along with COO Scott Cutler set to exit business. New owner Zix vows MSP partner commitment amid cloud email security push.

Backup & disaster recovery (BDR) provider Storagepipe Solutions acquires MSP GridWay Computing, uniting Veeam data protection partners in Canada.

Red Level Networks, Microsoft IT services provider & consulting firm, acquires the Grand Rapids, Michigan, business & technology consultancy C/D/H.

Alight Solutions acquired Adaptive Insights implementation partner Carlson Management Consulting.

Enterprise Vision Technologies (EVT) acquires ServiceNow and Red Hat partner Zefflin Systems. Multiple ServiceNow IT service management (ITSM) partners purchased in recent months.

SolarWinds CEO Kevin Thompson: Private equity deals (including Thoma Bravo's ConnectWise acquisition) may eventually pave the way for venture capital-funded MSP software startups.

ConnectWise acquired by private equity firm Thoma Bravo for roughly $1.5 billion, ChannelE2E estimates. Jason Magee succeeds ConnectWise CEO Arnie Bellini. MSP partner focus, five-year strategic plan intact.

Thoma Bravo acquires ConnectWise: Details about the private equity firm, similar investments in Continuum Managed Servics & SolarWinds, plus ConnectWise partner implications.