iomart snaps up Extrinsica

Cloud computing player iomart has bolstered its Azure market position with the acquisition of Extrinsica.

As a Microsoft Azure Cloud Solution Provider (CSP) partner, Extrinsica will give iomart more depth in that area, with indications that it will start by reaching out to existing customers that need support on that front.

The acquired business is exclusively focused on Azure public cloud after being invited by Microsoft to become one of the first 25 Azure CSP partners worldwide in 2017. The firm has cost an initial £4m, with a further £0.3m payable on the achievement of key customer targets during the calendar year.

For the year ended 31 March, Extrinsica generated revenues of £7.4m, representing year-on-year growth of 40%, and EBITDA of £0.1m.

The plan is for Simon Smith, CEO and co-founder of Extrinsica, to continue to lead the 33-strong business as CEO with his executive team.

Reece Donovan, CEO of iomart Group, said it had sealed the deal to enable the business to support existing and fresh customers that want Microsoft Azure support.

“[Smith] and the team have been at the forefront of the market developments of Azure since 2017 and have deep skills and expertise in this in-demand area of cloud computing, which will accelerate the initial investments we have made in our own Microsoft resources and capabilities,” he said.

“This is a meaningful step in our strategy as we position the group for its next phase of growth as a leading secure hybrid cloud business,” he added.

In response, Extrinsica’s Smith said the business would benefit from becoming part of the iomart group, as would staff and customers.

“It allows us to leverage joint capabilities, capitalise on our understanding of the markets we operate in and build upon our significant achievements to date,” he added. “iomart has a long pedigree in cloud infrastructure, an impressive customer base and a growth strategy which I believe positions iomart well for future success. The team and I are all incredibly excited to be working as part of the wider group and look forward to being a key part of driving iomart’s ongoing success.”

iomart has been bolstering its position as a managed service player over the past couple of years as part of a strategy to establish a hybrid cloud business. The firm has used acquisition as a means of expanding the business before, picking up Concepta last August, adding more data management tools and an established channel network.