Acquisition | Pixr8 News

11Oct By Gauri SinghNo Comments

ACQUISITION

Mobile Wallet Mobikwik Makes its First Ever Acquisition

One of the most popular digital payments company in India Mobikwik has reportedly announced the acquisition of online wealth management platform called Clearfunds. With this move, the mobile wallet seems to foray into the country’s wealth management market. The amount of the acquisition deal, however, has not been disclosed yet. Clearfunds is an online mutual fund investment platform based out of Mumbai. The digital payments major stated that it would be investing $15 million in the coming next years’ time to accelerate its wealth management business. "MobiKwik users will now be able to start their investing journey with as little as Rs. 100," Upasana Taku, Co-Founder and Director, MobiKwik stated. "This is the first-ever acquisition by MobiKwik as we look to build out our full-stack f...

California-based ServiceNow Acquires FriendlyData to Simplify Work

11Oct By Gauri SinghNo Comments

ACQUISITION

California-based ServiceNow Acquires FriendlyData to Simplify Work

California based cloud service management company ServiceNow has announced the acquisition of a startup called FriendlyData. The move is being taken to integrate the startup’s natural language search technology into apps on its Now platform. FriendlyData was founded in 2016 and its natural language query (NLQ) technology enables enterprise customers to build search tools. These tools allow users to ask technical questions even if they don’t know the right jargon. The company's tech will be integrated into ServiceNow’s platform that will include apps for IT, human resources, security operations, and customer service management. “ServiceNow is bringing NLQ capabilities to the Now Platform, enabling companies to ask technical questions in plain English and receive direct answers. Wit...

Strand Life Sciences to Acquire Medical Arm of Quest Diagnostics

9Oct By Gauri SinghNo Comments

ACQUISITION

Strand Life Sciences to Acquire Medical Arm of Quest Diagnostics

Bengaluru-based silico technology company Strand Life Sciences Pvt. Ltd has entered a deal to acquire the India medical diagnostics business of New York Stock Exchange-listed Quest Diagnostics Inc. However, the financial details of the deal have not been disclosed yet. Ramesh Hariharan, CEO at Strand Life stated that the deal will add strong North India presence and marquee clientele that includes hospital chains, corporate houses and pharmaceutical companies to the company’s portfolio. “This acquisition is an important addition to our network of 24 diagnostic labs across India, especially as we continue to expand our work in oncology, genomics, and precision medicine,” Ramesh Hariharan, CEO at Strand Life, said. On the other hand, Quest has a 65,000-square-feet laboratory in Gurugam....

US-based Thomas Cook May Acquire Mumbai’s Traveljunkie

8Oct By Gauri SinghNo Comments

ACQUISITION

US-based Thomas Cook May Acquire Mumbai’s Traveljunkie

The US-based popular travel agency Thomas Cook is eyeing to acquire 24% stake in Mumbai-based Traveljunkie, which recommends destinations and help people plan their trips and book activities, hotels and flights. The startup Traveljunkie basically serves people traveling to Thailand, Indonesia and Turkey. The company was founded in 2015 by IIT-Bombay graduates Ameya Sahasrabudhe and Rahul Singh. The source of revenue for the startup is the commission that it charges from operators and vendors selling local activities and experiences. The good part is that the users are not charged anything. “For Thomas Cook, the partnership with Ithaka creates a new channel that reaches and serves millennials, while for Ithaka, the partnership delivers an end-to-end, bookable experience,” said Madhav...

USA Based Salesforce Acquires Marketing Firm Rebel

6Oct By Gauri SinghNo Comments

ACQUISITION

USA Based Salesforce Acquires Marketing Firm Rebel

USA’s cloud computing company Salesforce has reportedly acquired Rebel, a startup that develops interactive email services for businesses to enhance their direct marketing services. The startup has claimed that it will be joining Salesforce’s Marketing Cloud operation, which will integrate Rebel’s API-based services into its platform. “With Rebel’s Mail and API solutions, brands, including Dollar Shave Club, L’Oreal and HelloFresh, turn emails into an extension of their website or app – collecting data, removing friction from the conversion process, and enhancing the customer experience. Rebel will enhance the power of Salesforce Marketing Clod and fundamentally change the way people interact with email,” said the founder. Saleforce’s list of acquisitions has been long it competes wit...

Tata Communications Acquires Netherlands based Teleena

4Oct By Gauri SinghNo Comments

News

Tata Communications Acquires Netherlands based Teleena

Tata Communications announced that the company is acquiring Teleena which is a Netherlands based Internet of Things (IoT) connectivity specialist and mobile virtual network enabler (MVNE). This deal is followed by Tata Communications’ investment in Teleena in January 2017 when the company became the single largest shareholder in Teleena with a 35% stake. “The growth rate in the global mobility and IoT market is phenomenal: by 2021, enterprises’ spending on mobility alone is set to surpass $1.7trillion,” said Anthony Bartolo, Chief Product Officer, Tata Communications. “Our vision is to create an environment where anything can be ‘born connected’. Providing everyone and everything in the world with seamless connectivity globally will support businesses’ digital transformation.” Tele...

RIL in Talks to Acquire India’s Largest Cable Operator

3Oct By Gauri SinghNo Comments

ACQUISITION

RIL in Talks to Acquire India’s Largest Cable Operator

Indian conglomerate Reliance Industries is in talks to acquire India’s largest cable operator, Hathway Cable & Datacom. With this acquisition, the company is looking to speed up the commercial launch of its GigaFiber high-speed home broadband services. However, some people familiar with the development have stated that the talks were at an initial stage and a deal was still at an exploratory stage. “It’s too early to say if the deal will go through or not, but RIL is aggressively pursuing it,” one of the people said. “The valuation figure being discussed is around Rs 2,500 crore,” the person added. Hathway is one of the largest Digital Cable TV and Broadband Internet Services provider in India that offers cable television services across 140 cities. It is a multi-system operator (...

Jakarta-based POS Provider Acquires Mumbai-based GetFocus

1Oct By Gauri SinghNo Comments

ACQUISITION

Jakarta-based POS Provider Acquires Mumbai-based GetFocus

A point-of-sales (POS) provider Moka which is based in Jakarta has reportedly acquired a Mumbai-based contextual marketing company known as GetFocus. However, the amount of deal has not been disclosed yet. Following this acquisition, both these companies are looking forward to combining their synergies and interaction for the purpose of strengthening their technology capabilities and leadership. “Moka’s vision and mission truly inspired us at GetFocus. We have long seen how technology is disrupting traditional retail and providing a much better experience to the end user along the way. We are glad to partner with Moka in their journey and solve for some of the largest problems faced by the 65 Mn merchants in Indonesia every day,” Prateek Chaturvedi, CEO of GetFocus said. Along with th...

28Sep By Gauri SinghNo Comments

ACQUISITION

Aditya Birla Group in Talks to Acquire IL&FS’s Education Arm

Indian conglomerate Aditya Birla Group is eyeing to acquire the education and training arm of Infrastructure Leasing and Financial Services Ltd (IL&FS). The arm is known as IL&FS Education and Technology Services (IETS). IETS is a wholly owned subsidiary of IL&FS and operates computer labs in government schools under the build-own-operate (BOO) model. It manages 16,000 schools in 11 states and also offers vocational skills training to youth funded by governments and corporates. Last year, the company trained nearly 300,000 candidates and was the biggest such trainer under the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana which is the Indian government’s skill development programme. The company is operational in 17 countries in the Middle East and North Africa and South and South...

Reliance Industries Acquires 37.4% Stake in California’s AI Startup

27Sep By Gauri SinghNo Comments

ACQUISITION

Reliance Industries Acquires 37.4% Stake in California’s AI Startup

Reliance Industries has invested an amount of $8 million in California-based NetraDyne. NetraDyne is an artificial intelligence company that focuses on the driver and commercial fleet safety. Prior to this, Reliance invested $16 million in June 2016 in the startup, thus, this marks as its second investment in the firm. With this investment, Reliance now has taken over around 37.4% stake in the startup. According to the statement, the investment was made through its subsidiary Reliance Industrial Investments and Holdings (RIIHL). It has subscribed to 4.06 million shares (4,058,647 shares) at Rs 1.9711 per share. Reliance said this investment has potential synergies with its "digital services and communications initiatives, apart from commercialization benefits in India." NetraDy...

Michael Kors Now Owns Italian Fashion House Versace

26Sep By Gauri SinghNo Comments

ACQUISITION

Michael Kors Now Owns Italian Fashion House Versace

The multinational fashion giant Michael Kors now owns the popular Italian fashion house Versace. The deal of the acquisition was worth $2.1 billion. With this deal, the value of Versace has reached $2 billion. This acquisition has brought the American luxury company closer to its goal of becoming an international house of fashion brands. The company plans to Versace’s sales to $2 billion annually which is more than double the current level. Along with this, it may also expand the number of stores globally to 300 from about 200 and also boost up the e-commerce development. “The acquisition of Versace is an important milestone for our group,” Michael Kors Chief Executive Officer John Idol stated. “We are committed to investing in its growth.” This particular deal has caused some distres...

Walmart India’s E-commerce Entity Flipkart Acquires Israel Based Startup

26Sep By Press Trust of IndiaNo Comments

ACQUISITION

Walmart India’s E-commerce Entity Flipkart Acquires Israel Based Startup

E-commerce major Flipkart said it has acquired Israel-based Upstream Commerce for an undisclosed amount as the Walmart-backed firm aims to further strengthen its selection and pricing capabilities. Flipkart, which is locked in an intense battle for market leadership in India against American rival Amazon, will get access to advanced data science-based intelligent solutions through the acquisition, it said in a statement. The buyout of Upstream Commerce, which offers cloud-based, automated competitive pricing and product analysis solutions, will also strengthen Flipkart's ability to deliver insights to its sellers, it added. Post the acquisition, the Upstream Commerce team, while continuing to work out of Israel, will become part of Flipkart. "With the Upstream acquisition, we wil...