Rishad Premji-led IT software major Wipro Ltd on Thursday said it has agreed to buy British consulting firm Capco for $1.45 billion in one of the biggest ever all-cash deals in India’s infotech sector.
Capco has a team of more than 5,000 business and technology consultants across 30 locations, and is expected to strengthen Wipro’s position in the financial services industry, which contributes about 30% to the company’s revenue, according to a Wipro statement.
The acquisition is expected to close in the April-June quarter. London-based Capco provides digital, consulting and technology services to financial institutions. Capco’s clients include top companies in the financial services and energy and commodities trading sectors.
“Together, we can deliver high-end consulting and technology transformations and operations offerings to our clients," said Thierry Delaporte, chief executive officer and managing director of Wipro.
The deal appears to be bold move by Wipro to recover ground after it lost its position as India’s third-largest software services provider to HCL Technologies Ltd.
Top IT services companies are increasingly buying out smaller specialized firms to bring in ready talent and technology capabilities as a strategy to rapidly expand their digital business, which has seen high demand during the pandemic.
“By combining Wipro’s capabilities in strategic design, digital transformation, cloud, cybersecurity, IT and operations services with Capco’s domain and consulting strength, clients will gain access to a partner who can deliver integrated, bespoke solutions to help fuel growth and achieve their transformation objectives," Wipro said in a statement.
Since he took over in July, Delaporte has made a series of acquisitions to restore growth amid soaring demand for digital services during the pandemic.
Before Capco, Wipro made three acquisitions under Delaporte. Through 2020, it acquired leading Salesforce multi-cloud partner 4C; engineering services company Eximius Design; and Encore Theme Technologies, a specialist in providing cloud solutions in financial services.
