Narayan AmmachchiGFT Technologies is acquiring Rule Financial, a deal that will help the German firm add Costa Rica to its nearshore presence. The acquisition will add $57 million to GFT’s revenue in the second half of this year.
Headquartered in the UK, Rule Financial offers IT consultancy services to banks. It counts nine of the top ten investment banks as its clients.
“The acquisition of Rule Financial will strengthen our position in the fast-growing Capital Markets sector,” said Ulrich Dietz, CEO of the GFT Group, in a press release. “By pooling our offerings, we can now provide an even more comprehensive portfolio of solutions for the banking sector, including the necessary business consultants and IT experts.”
Rule Financial, which reported $82 million in revenue last year, operates its Costa Rican center mainly to serve clients in North America.
“A raft of new regulation in the UK and USA is forcing all market participants to make radical adjustments to their processes and IT systems,” said Marika Lulay, Chief Operating Officer of the GFT Group.
GFT has a huge operation in Brazil, where its clients include some of the world’s biggest global banks, like HSBC, Deutsche Bank, and Santander, besides a few of the biggest Brazilian commercial and investment banks.
The Brazilian branch of GFT is also responsible for all the support and maintenance and a few innovation projects for Deutsche Bank`s operation in the United States.
With about 170 employees, GFT Brazil is one among top 10 IT services firms in the South American country. A merger with Rule Financial takes GFT Group’s total headcount 3000 staff.
Founded by Ulrich Dietz in 1987 in the middle of the Black Forest, the GFT Group achieved revenues of more than $353 million in 2013.
“This further strong expansion of our nearshore capacities means we can ensure the fastest possible and most cost-effective implementation of IT projects in the relevant client’s respective time-zone,” adds Marika Lulay.
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