Advent International to buy McAfee for $14bn

The proposed buyouts of CoreSite Realty ($10.1 billion), CyrusOne ($15 billion) and McAfee ($14 billion) dominated the international ICT market last month.

At home, the activities of MTN and Vodacom stole the spotlight.

• Aten International, a global provider of audio-visual and IT connectivity solutions, has established a presence in SA after six years of supplying its solutions to local businesses and consumers through partners.
• Imperial’s Market Access business has made a strategic investment (24%) in FigJam, a salesforce automation solution provider in Africa.
• MTN has agreed to exit its operations in Yemen through a transfer of its effective shareholding to Emerald International Investment, a subsidiary of Zubair.
• MTN SA has finalised its passive tower infrastructure transaction with IHS Towers (R6.4 billion).
• Net1 UEPS Technologies has signed a definitive agreement to acquire the Connect Group, one of SA’s fastest growing fintech businesses (R3.7 billion).
• SkyNet’s operations in SA, Namibia, Mozambique, the UK, Belgium and Germany have been acquired by the South African management team together with RMB Ventures, Bopa Moruo Private Equity and New GX Capital Holdings.
• Vox has introduced a new subsidiary, Armata Cyber Intelligence, that it says will provide the technology and expertise needed to help local businesses better protect themselves against cyber threats.
• The Vodacom Group has acquired a co-controlling equity stake in Community Investment Ventures Holdings’ fibre assets (Dark Fibre Africa and Vumatel) (R13.2 billion); has entered into a binding agreement to acquire a 55% shareholding in Egypt Telecommunications SAE ($2.7 billion); will spin off its South African telecommunications tower portfolio into a separate business and may seek partners for the newly created entity; and may consider a separate listing of its financial services business in SA.
• Zoho, an Indian-based technology firm that makes web-based business tools, has opened its South African office in Cape Town.
• The appointment of a new MD at Webhelp’s South African operations.
• The death of Peter Riches, founder of Meta Group South Africa and an IT and business veteran.

• The Econet Group will create a new entity, Cassava Technologies, headquartered in London, which will bring together Econet’s digital services and infrastructure businesses, including those in fibre broadband, data centres, renewable energy, security and fintech, under one entity.
• The appointment of a new MD at Seacom.

• Accenture acquired ClearEdge Partners, a firm specialising in procurement spend management; Founders Intelligence, an innovation strategy consulting firm; and TA Cook, a consultancy specialising in asset performance management and capital projects for clients in capital-intensive industries and infrastructure. Accenture has also formed an agreement to buy Tambourine, an e-commerce customer experience agency with award-winning capabilities in cloud-based technologies in Japan, as well as an investment via Accenture Ventures in Geneyx Genomex, an Israel-based developer of genomic analysis and interpretation software.
• Agilico purchased INVU, a document management software provider.
• Allied Motion Technologies acquired ALIO Industries, an innovator and manufacturer of advanced linear and rotary motion systems for nano-precision applications; and ORMEC Systems, a developer and manufacturer of mission-critical electro-mechanical automation solutions and motion control products, including multi-axis controls, electronic drives and actuators for the automation and aerospace industries.
• AudioCodes bought Callverso, a leading provider of conversational AI solutions and NLU technology for contact centres.

IT spending in EMEA is forecast to total $1.3 trillion in 2022.

• Blackstone acquired International Data Group, the parent company of IDC ($1.3 billion).
• The BDR group, a UK-based IT and telecoms reseller, bought Maple Computing, which offers infrastructure solutions, managed services and data management and other services.
• CAE Technology purchased UK-based Novus Group, a VAR.
• BCM One acquired CoreDial, a provider of cloud-based unified communications services.
• DataCore bought MayaData, one of the leading independent developers of container-attached storage and the original developer of the OpenEBS open source Kubernetes storage technology.
• Digi International purchased Ventus Holdings, a leader in managed network as a service solutions that simplify the complexity of enterprise WAN connectivity.
• DSS’s majority-owned subsidiary, American Medical REIT, acquired three hospitals located in Fort Worth, Plano and Pittsburgh.
• Exotel bought Cogno AI, an artificial intelligence-powered omni-channel cloud communication platform
• General Informatics purchased Versiant, a fellow MSP.
• ICF International acquired Enterprise Science and Computing, which focuses on big data integration and visualisation, health IT interoperability, algorithm development and other data science disciplines to help make the sharing of research and information more seamless.
• UK-based Kerv bought Gyrocom, an SD-WAN specialist.
• Lattice Semiconductor purchased Mirametrix, a software company focused on advanced AI solutions for computer vision applications.
• Life360 acquired Tile, a maker of tracking tags.
• Motorola Solutions bought Envysion, a provider of enterprise video security and business analytics solutions for the quick-service restaurant and retail industries.
• Pitney Bowes purchased CrescoData, a platform as a service business in the commerce space.
• Private Division, a publishing label of Take-Two Interactive Software, acquired Roll7, a UK-based video game developer.
• India-based Sapio Analytics bought KGS Microsystems, a player in the archival digitisation industry.
• The Schwarz Group purchased Israel-based XM Cyber, a security start-up.
• Scientific Games acquired Authentic Gaming, a provider of premium live casino solutions.
• SecureAuth bought Acceptto, a passwordless authentication vendor.
• Similarweb purchased Embee Mobile, a mobile insights provider and market leader in mobile audience analytics, consumer panels and mobile sampling.
• Spotify acquired Findaway, an audio tech company.
• Synopsys bought Concertio, a provider of AI-powered performance optimisation software.
• Tetra Tech purchased Enterprise Automation, a provider of industrial control and automation system consulting and engineering service.
• Tencent acquired a 90% stake in Wake Up Interactive, a Japanese creative studio with several Nintendo Switch hit games to its name.
• Unacademy bought Swiflearn, an online platform that provides live face-to-face online tuition for school students.
• Unisys purchased Mobinergy, which specialises in unified endpoint management.
• Verisk acquired Data Driven Safety, a leading public record data aggregation firm that specialises in driver risk assessment in the USA.
• UK-based Wavenet bought the Excell Group, a Mitel, Avaya and Vodafone partner.
• Zenvia purchased SenseData Tecnologia, a SaaS company that enables businesses to create communication actions and specific 360º customer journeys.
• Advent International will buy McAfee, a cyber security firm ($14 billion) and Encora, an Indian origin IT services firm ($1.5 billion).
• AE Industrial Partners has sold Gryphon Technologies to ManTech International, a provider of advanced digital and systems engineering capabilities for Defence Department agencies ($350 million).
• Alphabet’s Google unit has lost an appeal to a €2.42 billion European anti-trust decision fine and has invested in the CME Group, the world's leading and most diverse derivatives marketplace.
• American Tower has agreed to buy CoreSite Realty, a data centre operator ($10.1 billion).
• Bentley Systems has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Power Line Systems, a leader in software for the design of overhead electric power transmission lines and their structures ($700 million).
• Booz Allen Hamilton has completed a transaction to transfer all assets related to SnapAttack, a cloud-based software solution that brings together actionable threat intelligence and hacker detection to proactively detect and defend against cyber threats, to a new cyber threat hunting and detection company.
• Boxlight has agreed on a deal to acquire FrontRow Calypso, a classroom and campus communication solution for the education market.
• Brooks Automation is changing its name to Azenta.
• CACI International has entered into an agreement to acquire SA Photonics, a leader in the development and deployment of innovative multi-domain photonics technologies for free space optical communications.
• The Carlyle Group has agreed to sell PK to Concentrix, a customer engagement solutions company ($1.6 billion).
• CrowdStrike has agreed to purchase SecureCircle, a data protection start-up, to extend the company’s zero trust endpoint security device and identity capabilities to include data.
• The Carlyle Group has agreed to acquire Swiss industrial software firm AutoForm (€1.75 billion).
• Dun & Bradstreet has entered into definitive agreements to acquire Eyeota, a data transformation company, and NetWise, a provider of B2B marketing data.
• DuPont de Nemours has agreed to buy Rogers Corp, an electronics material specialist ($5.2 billion).
• EmployBridge has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Hire Dynamics, a top provider of light industrial workforce solutions.
• Ericsson has agreed to buy Vonage, a cloud communications firm ($6.2 billion).
• Garmin will transfer the listing of its shares from the Nasdaq National Market to the New York Stock Exchange.
• Globant has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Navint, a lead-to-revenue Salesforce partner that helps organisations drive growth and operational efficiency.
• Global-e Online will acquire Flow Commerce, the provider of a technology-based cross-border e-commerce software solution for emerging brands ($500 million).
• IBM plans to acquire ReaQta, whose endpoint security solutions are designed to leverage AI to automatically identify and manage threats, while remaining undetectable to adversaries.
• IBM’s split into IBM and Kyndryl has been completed.
• Instructure Holdings has entered into an agreement to acquire Kimono, a leader in cloud-based data integration and interoperability for education.
• IK Partners has agreed to acquire Truesec, a Swedish cyber security service provider.
• KKR and Global Infrastructure Partners will acquire CyrusOne, a data centre operator ($15 billion).
• Lumentum will acquire NeoPhotonics, a leading developer and manufacturer of lasers and optoelectronic solutions ($918 million).
• MKS will buy Atotech, a leading specialty-chemicals technology company.
• OpenText has entered an agreement to buy Zix, an e-mail encryption company ($860 million).
• Orange has launched its European TowerCo, TOTEM.
• Resurgens Technology Partners has agreed to sell Investment Metrics, an investment analytics, reporting, data and benchmarking company to Confluence Technologies ($500 million).
• SilverSun’s subsidiary, SWK Technologies, has signed a letter of intent to purchase the Acumatica division of Dynamic Tech Services, a reseller of Acumatica ERP software solutions.
• Smarsh has agreed to buy the Digital Safe archiving and risk management portfolio from Micro Focus.
• UK-based Solutionize Global, a Dell partner, has filed for voluntary liquidation.
• Teleo Capital has acquired Flatirons Solutions, a provider of technical content management software for the aviation and defence industries.
• Unity Software will buy Weta Digital, a visual effects studio known for its work in movies such as "Godzilla vs Kong" and "Avatar" ($1.63 billion).
• VIA Technologies plans to sell Centaur Technology, its subsidiary specialising in x86 CPU designs, to Intel ($125 million).
• Viasat will acquire Inmarsat ($7.3 billion).
• VMware’s separation from Dell has been finalised.
• Workday has entered into a definitive agreement to purchase VNDLY, an industry leader in cloud-based external workforce and vendor management technology ($160 million).
• The $105 million investment by Andreessen Horowitz, Bond, EQT Ventures, Kleiner Perkins, Mango Capital and Menlo Ventures in Netlify, which offers a platform for software developers to build, deploy and scale web applications.
• Bowmark Capital invested in Kubrick Group, a UK-based provider of next-generation technology consulting.
• The investment by Citadel Securities and GV in Yellowbrick Data, which offers a data warehousing platform.
• The $160 million investment by FTV Capital in Plate IQ, the operator of an accounts payable automation, invoice management and payments platform for the restaurant and hospitality industry.
• The €100 million investment by Insight Partners in PSPDFKit, a document processing and manipulation platform for developers and enterprise businesses.
• The $250 million investment co-led by Altimeter Capital Management and Coatue in ClickHouse, the provider of a database management system designed to generate real-time analytics using SQL queries.
• The $250 million investment co-led by Sequoia and Sofina in Collibra, the developer of a cloud-based data intelligence platform that's used by those in sectors such as manufacturing, healthcare and government.
• The $250 million investment led by Alpha Wave Ventures in Cerebras Systems, a developer of computing chips intended to accelerate AI.
• The $200 million investment led by led by Battery Ventures, Insight Partners, Altimeter Capital and Tiger Global in Workato, an enterprise software company that offers an automation platform for businesses.
• The $120 million investment led by Brighton Park Capital in Reltio, a company that offers a data management platform for customers.
• The $140.3 million investment led by CapitalG, Alphabet’s independent growth fund, in Expel, a managed detection and response provider.
• The $100 million investment led by the Commonwealth Bank of Australia in H2O.ai, a cloud AI technology developer.
• The $150 million investment led by GGV Capital in Vercel, a web development software start-up.
• The investments led by Iconiq Capital in Notable, the provider of a health tech platform that automates healthcare workflows by using AI to perform administrative tasks on behalf of clinicians and staff ($100 million) and Drata, a security and compliance automation specialist ($100 million).
• The $150 million investment led by Liberty Strategic Capital in Contrast Security, a code security tool developer.
• The $100 million investment led by March Capital in ThoughtSpot, a data analytics software developer.
• The $250 million investment led by Sequoia Capital Global Equities and Sofina in Collibra, a data intelligence platform developer.
• The $425 million investment led by Silversmith Capital Partners in Formstack, the provider of a no-code workplace productivity platform.
• The $1.3 billion investment led by existing investors Sutter Hill Ventures, Altimeter Capital, D1 Capital Partners and Tiger Global Management in Lacework, a cloud security services provider.
• The $202 million investment led by TPG in Everlaw, the developer of a cloud-based litigation platform designed for corporate counsels, litigators and government attorneys.
• The appointments of new CEOs at Dynatrace, GitHub, Infineon, IQE, Logically, Rogers Communications (interim) and Splunk (interim).
• IPO filings from Benchling (USA), Cloud Village (Hong Kong), HashiCorp (NYSE), SenseTime Group (Hong Kong) and Weibo (Hong Kong).
• IPOs/listings from ACM Research (China’s Nasdaq like Star market), Backblaze (Nasdaq), Braze (Nasdaq), HireRight (NYSE), Kakao Pay (Seoul), Kyndryl (NYSE), Mitratel (Indonesia). MotorK (Amsterdam), Paytm (India) and Weave Communications (NYSE).

• According to Gartner, IT spending in EMEA is forecast to total $1.3 trillion in 2022, an increase of 4.7% from 2021. The 2022 growth rate will be slower than in 2021 when EMEA IT spending is expected to grow 6.3%.

• JSE All share index: Up 1.7%
• FTSE100: Down 2.7%
• DAX: Down 2.8%
• NYSE (Dow): Down 2.6%
• S&P 500: Down 1.3%
• Nasdaq: Down 0.1%
• Nikkei225: Down 0.5%
• Hang Seng: Down 5.1%
• Shanghai: Up 0.5%

Look out for KKR buying Telecom Italia, Italy's biggest phone group ($12 billion).