TelcoSwitch bolsters Scottish position with SureVoIP buy

This is shaping up to be a year of acquisition and expansion for unified communication (UC) specialist TelcoSwitch, with the firm sealing its third deal of 2021.

TelcoSwitch started the year by clarifying that it would be using some of the millions it raised through Boost&Co and existing investors to underpin its merger and acquisition (M&A) aspirations.

That turned into action in late January, with the deal for the OneVoice cloud-based hosted telephony platform from Worcester-based Qunifi for an undisclosed sum. TelcoSwitch followed that up in April with the addition of PBX Hosting for £4.5m.

Scottish-based IP telephony provider and network operator SureVoIP becomes the third purchase of the year, with the move adding more presence north of the border.

The firm has a strong background in the small and medium-sized entperise (SME) and home office market, and will add more expertise around that area as well as give TelcoSwitch more potential for increasing its residential-based services as the UK moves towards the PSTN switch-off in 2025.

The deal, the terms of which were not disclosed, hands TelcoSwitch an office in Aberdeen, which will become its third regional base.

The staff at the firm will be joining the TelcoSwitch family, and SureVoIP founder and managing director Gavin Henry will join the TelcoSwitch Group as its newly appointed CIO.

“SureVoIP is a company we’ve paid close attention to for the past couple of years, and I’ve known the founder, Gavin Henry, for much longer. His team have built a product set we see as hugely valuable to TelcoSwitch, and a network behind that which will enhance the existing infrastructure within our group of companies,” said Russell Lux, CEO at TelcoSwitch.

“I’m pleased we’ve been able to conclude this deal, our third of the year, and delighted that Gavin and his team are joining the TelcoSwitch family.”

In response, Henry said that SureVoIP had followed the progress of TelcoSwitch and seen it expanding its operation.

“TelcoSwitch has grown significantly over the past three years – not just in terms of partners and end-users, but also across its product suite. Both companies share the same outlook on where our industry is heading, which is why TelcoSwitch is the ideal home for SureVoIP,” he said.

TelcoSwitch is also continuing to develop its own propositions. In July 2021, it cut the ribbon on its 3Sixty SaaS comms platform that allows users to use a number of channels – including WhatsApp, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, live web chat (including chatbots), email, SMS, and traditional voice calls – to reach out to customers.

“Delivering a true omnichannel customer experience that transcends the traditional contact centre is something we’ve been working towards for the past two years. We’ve spent a lot of time assessing the market need and evaluating our competitors to ensure we deliver something that offers a technical and commercial advantage,” said Lux.

“Omnichannel was previously reserved for enterprise businesses, but we see a great mid-market opportunity, with many smaller businesses currently under-served and needing to enhance their customer relationships without financial barriers to entry. We believe 3Sixty is absolutely the solution to address that need,” he added.