We are pleased to announce that we have supported the merger of existing portfolio company Cloud Technology Solutions Group (“CTS”) and Appsbroker Ltd. (“Appsbroker”), alongside Marlin Equity Partners (“Marlin”), to form the largest Google Cloud-dedicated digital consultancy in Europe.
The two Google Premier Partners will become a single, united company for both strategic consulting and engineering, meeting the rapidly growing demand for seamless artificial intelligence, martech, data and cloud security solutions that deliver real business impact. With a customer base that already includes major household names, the agreement will further boost expansion goals in industries like financial services, retail, manufacturing, and the public sector – both in the UK and across the EMEA region.
Under the terms of the agreement, the company will be led by Tom Ray, CEO of CTS, with Mike Conner, Founder and CEO of Appsbroker, joining the Group Investment Board.
Tom Ray, CEO, said: “We’re incredibly excited about what this strategic merger means for our customers and our people. From countering cyber threats, to unlocking the true potential of AI, there is now a huge opportunity to leverage the full spectrum of Google Cloud capabilities to deliver real impact for businesses. CTS and Appsbroker house some of the industry’s foremost cloud experts, with over 420 Google certifications and numerous industry awards. Bringing our standout teams together under one roof puts us in a strong position to drive the future of digital transformation.”
Mike Conner added: “Appsbroker and CTS have partnered with Google Cloud for over 15 years. In that time, we have grown rapidly and delivered success in premium professional and managed services to many of Google’s most important customers. With little overlap across our combined customer base and strong shared values, it made real sense for us to come together to create the largest concentration of Google Cloud talent in Europe. We are both committed to delivering high-impact transformational projects, so scale is important to ensure our customers have access to the skills and training to fully leverage the burgeoning Google Cloud AI, data, and security opportunity.”
NorthEdge has supported the growth of CTS since the original MBO in 2018 and is delighted to complete the merger of CTS and Appsbroker, alongside Marlin, which represents another important milestone on the growth journey of the Company. Jon Pickering, Chief Investment Officer at NorthEdge, said: “CTS and Appsbroker are two of the most successful companies in the Google ecosystem, and they continue to go from strength-to-strength. In merging, they are now well-positioned to take advantage of the growing demand for Google Cloud services, driven by exciting new opportunities for businesses in exciting areas like AI. We look forward to supporting the business to achieve further growth and expansion across international markets.”