Smith Cooper Corporate Finance advises Ameo on Panoply sale
Mid-market M&A advisory firm Smith Cooper Corporate Finance has advised management consulting firm Ameo on its sale to The Panoply, an AIM-listed technology group.
The deal team advising Ameo was led by Darren Hodson and Tom Joy from Smith Cooper Corporate Finance and Tim Ward and Peter Raybould from Harrison Clark Rickerbys.
“Smith Coopers’ expert counselling and focus on protecting our best interests ultimately led to identifying the right partner [The Panoply] to help drive our next stage of growth. We are grateful to the Smith Cooper team for their commitment to helping us achieve this exciting transaction,” said Ben Ward, Director of Ameo.
Mike Dearing, a partner at Ameo added, “Smith Cooper Corporate Finance were a pleasure to work with in completing this complex transaction. They demonstrated a strong depth of knowledge in professional services, robustly managed the process to an expedient timetable and demonstrated the tenacity, patience and fortitude to bring the buyer and seller to a mutually agreeable place to complete the deal.”
Commenting on the successful deal, lead dealmaker and head of Smith Cooper’s corporate finance division in Birmingham Darren Hodson said, “It has been a privilege working with Mike and Ben to complete this transaction. We are excited to see Ameo continue to thrive as part of The Panoply.”
Hodson, who previously held senior positions at Deloitte and BDO, added that the deal expands Smith Cooper's “strong track record” in the consultancy industry.
According to Tim Ward, the lead dealmaker from law firm Harrison Clark Rickerbys, the transaction was “inherently fairly complex” and the joint deal team had to work “to a very strict deadline”. “But we are delighted to be able to help to take Ameo forward with The Panoply in this way.”
Ameo joins The Panoply
Ameo has been working with businesses for over 10 years seeking to deliver long-lasting, cost-effective change across a wide range of areas, from financial reporting and process design to digital innovation. Public sector work represents the majority of its revenue.
With the acquisition of Ameo, The Panoply adds a team of around thirty consultants and staff to its ranks. “Our focus is to deliver positive, sustainable change in the UK public sector and Ameo's stellar track record of work in central and local government, healthcare and higher education broadens our capability to achieve this goal for our clients,” said Neal Gandhi, Chief Executive Officer of The Panoply.
“This acquisition increases our relevance and puts us in a stronger position to target and win larger, more strategic engagements at the heart of the UK public sector. Public services revenues now account for approximately 70% of our turnover, giving us additional scale in the sector and adding to the breadth of skills that we can now offer clients.”
For more information on the deal see: Consultancy firm Ameo joins technology group The Panoply.
