Equiteq advises Aware Group on its sale to HSO

August 13, 2024

Equiteq acted as exclusive financial advisor to Aware Group (Aware), an award-winning Microsoft Data and AI partner, on its sale to HSO, one of the world’s top business solution and implementation partners in the Microsoft ecosystem, backed by Carlyle.  

As an award-winning Microsoft solutions partner, Aware has positioned itself at the cutting edge of Data and AI solutions. For nearly a decade, the company has consistently led customers in leveraging the power of machine learning and generative AI to enhance their data strategies. With a proven history of success, Aware has helped hundreds of companies explore AI solutions and has taken dozens of these experiments from prototype to production, many of which have saved clients millions annually in operational costs and created efficiencies of up to 99%. 

Brandon Hutcheson, CEO Aware, comments, “As part of HSO, we will be able to accelerate our mission to create a worldwide impact with Data and AI. HSO's deep industry knowledge and expertise with Microsoft Dynamics 365 together with Aware's proven expertise in developing and deploying customized AI and data processing solutions, position us as a leading global force in the rapidly evolving AI business landscape.”  

Peter J. ter Maaten, Founder and CEO of HSO, remarked, "We are excited to welcome Aware to HSO. This acquisition strategically increases HSO's Data and AI capabilities, furthering our ability to deliver emerging technology solutions to customers globally. With the addition, HSO's repository of AI use cases has been significantly expanded to help customers accelerate their AI transformation to enhance employee experiences, transform customer interactions and reshape business processes and operational strategies.”

Commenting on Equiteq’s role in the transaction, Mike Jenkins, outgoing Chairman of Aware Group, “Equiteq were a brilliant partner for us. They took time to intimately understand our business, unique culture and the goals of our shareholders which directly influenced how we optimised the positioning of Aware to find our perfect buyer. Alex and the Equiteq team did a sterling job, gave pragmatic advice based on their deep global experience but equally importantly to us - from the first introductory meeting to sitting side-by-side as we signed the sale agreements - Equiteq worked hard at both a pace and scale to secure the outcome for our team. Our shareholders are over the moon with the result. I would happily recommend Equiteq to all founders of any IT services firm contemplating M&A.”

Alex Monck, Managing Director, commented, “Brandon and Jourdan have built a terrific business leveraging some of the most cutting-edge capability in Data and AI. We believe they’ve found a great home in HSO and that they have a very exciting future head helping drive HSO’s data and AI capability.”

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