Davies acquires financial services consulting firm Sionic
International financial services consultancy Sionic has been acquired by Davies, a fast-growing private equity-backed consulting and technology group.
Founded in 1968, Davies is a professional services firm focused on the insurance industry. The London-headquartered group, which has around 5,000 professionals in five countries, provides operations, consulting and technology services to all segments major segments within the industry.
The acquisition of Sionic, an award-winning management consulting firm that works for banks, insurers and other financial services institutions, expands the consulting wing of Davies with a team of 340 consultants, and deepens its consultancy services across topics including operating model strategy, risk management, regulatory compliance, and digital transformation.
Dan Saulter, Group CEO of Davies, said: “We are delighted to welcome Sionic. Their highly experienced consultants and technology experts are trusted by some of the world’s largest financial institutions and, like us, have been on a journey to expand internationally and invest in innovation for its highly regulated clients.”
For Davies, the move provides the firm with entry in segments outside of its traditional insurance domain, such as corporate banking and wealth management, and expands its geographical presence. Established by the merger between US-based Sionic Advisors and UK-based Catalyst in 2019, Sionic has offices in the UK, US, Switzerland, Spain, Canada, India and Hong Kong.
“Diversifying our solutions and expanding our operations globally is an important plank to our growth strategy. Through the addition of Sionic we can become more valuable to our 1,000+ global insurance and highly regulated clients,” said Saulter.
Meanwhile, for Sionic, the joining of forces will enable the consultancy to enlarge its footprint in the insurance industry.
Craig Sher, CEO of Sonic, said: “This creates a fantastic opportunity to combine our complementary skills to create innovative new products and services for existing and new clients... Joining forces with Davies will also create great new career opportunities for our people."
Sionic will be integrated into the Consulting & Technology practice of Davies, headed by CEO Mark Grocott. Craig Sher will continue to lead the day-to-day operations of Sionic and will join the Executive Leadership Team of Davies.
The deal sees Davies continue its buy-and-build strategy. Since 2017 the company has acquired over twenty consultancies and technology houses, including Cynergie, Citadel & Cedar Consulting, ContactParners, TriPlus, Grovelands and Veriphy. Davies is majority owned by BC Partners, which holds a majority stake since August this year.
