Equiteq advises WGroup on sale to Wavestone
Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) consultancy Equiteq has advised WGroup on its sale to French consultancy Wavestone. Based in Philadelphia, WGroup offers solutions in IT strategy, cost optimization, and operational improvement advisory services to businesses in industries including healthcare and insurance, media and entertainment, global manufacturing, retail, and financial services.
The sale furthers Wavestone’s 2021 Strategic Plan, which is focused on international development. Under the terms of the transaction, Wavestone will fully acquire WGroup, which will be consolidated in Wavestone’s account as of August 1.
“The US is a bellwether market in the consulting industry. We were impressed by WGroup’s leadership team and its ability to consistently expand its client base,” Pascal Imbert, Wavestone’s CEO, said. "We are eager to start working with WGroup’s team and thrive together seizing new opportunities in the US.”
WGroup’s clients include more than 200 Fortune 1000 companies. WGroup employs 100 team members, 50 of whom are permanent employees. It is unclear as to whether all of WGroup’s staff will be integrated into Wavestone’s approximately 3,000 employees across eight countries.
WGroup CEO Jeffrey Vail will join Wavestone’s executive committee. After an integration program, he will head Wavestone’s US business, which is estimated to come in at approximately $35 million. For the calendar year ending December 31, 2018, WGroup reported revenue of $26.1 million.
“After laying a 15-year foundation of persistent organic growth delivering world-class executive IT advisory to some of the best clients in the world, we’ve reached an inflection point. We are an ambitious team with our sights set on achieving market leadership in the US,” Jeffrey Vall, WGroup’s CEO, said. “To do so, we needed to deliver more service lines, greater breadth of expertise, around-the-globe capability, and overall, enhance our value to clients. Merging with Wavestone gives us this opportunity – today.”
Equiteq operates out of offices in London, New York, Paris, Singapore, and Sydney. specializing in M&A. The firm recently advised technology consultancy RevUnit on its investment from private equity firm Mountaingate Capital. The investment will allow RevUnit to accelerate its growth, both organically and through strategic acquisitions. Additionally, Equiteq in May received the “Professional Services Deal of the Year” award at the annual M&A Advsior Awards for guiding the sale of OEE Consulting to French professional services firm Webhelp.
