Infinigate snaps up Nuvias security and networking operations

Infinigate has moved to acquire security and networking arms of the Nuvias Group in a deal that will create a pan-European distribution business that should generate combined revenues of €1.4bn.

The unified communication (UC) part of Nuvias is not part of the intended deal and will remain owned by Rigby Private Equity, but in large part this deal marks an end to a buy and build strategy that had been kicked off by the acquisition of security-focused Wick Hill and networking specialist Zycko back in September 2017.

The attraction of the deal for Infinigate is the chance to add more depth to its existing cloud and networking security position, as well as giving increased access to a wider geography, including the UK.

The channel player has a stated ambition to grow the business annually by 20%, and the deal goes some way to realising this ambition with the expectation that the businesses would generate €1.4bn in revenues across Europe once the merger is complete.

Nuvias has been building a pan-European presence, and Inifingate – which already has a strong position in Germany – will be able to lean on that with the UK, France, Benelux, the Nordics and Southern Europe all getting a boost and the deal taking the firm into Eastern Europe.

“Infinigate will become even more relevant and powerful. We will have a stronger geographical footprint, especially in the core markets in Europe – where we will have a strong position in 21 countries,” said Klaus Schlichtherle, CEO of Infinigate Group.

“Our complementary vendor portfolios will create a huge opportunity for growth. And bringing together so many skilled people will enable us to create lots of new development opportunities in a fast-growing company. Infinigate will continue to be an exciting place to be for key value-add talent and a place to develop competencies, careers and opportunities,” he added.

“After closing the transaction, we aim to continue to grow the joint enterprise by more than 20% annually, and we will continue to address existing as well as new customers in a coordinated fashion. Nuvias and Infinigate have very similar strategies moving forward and will constantly stay focused on this,” added Schlichtherle.

In response, Simon England, CEO of the Nuvias Group, said that combing forces with Inifigate would help the business grow further.

“We are excited about joining forces and combining our assets to take the business and teams into the next phase of growth and expansion. Both companies value their people as their most critical asset, and the key to rewarding customer and vendor experiences in specialist distribution,” he said.