Australian cloud consultancy Versent gets put up for sale
A number of big buyout funds are currently poring over a sales proposal for Melbourne-based cloud consultancy Versent according to reports, with a potential valuation upwards of $500 million.
Australian cloud consultancy Versent is up for grabs according to a report from the AFR, with the Melbourne-born business carrying a potential half-a-billion dollar valuation.
The publication cited Goldman Sachs sales documents presently in front of big buyout funds, which outline the company’s recent performance. Less than a decade old, Versent currently rakes in around $150 in annual revenues, with plans to double that figure within the next three years.
Established in Melbourne in 2014 by former NAB employees Thor Essman and James Coxon, the consultancy has since grown to include offices in every Australian mainland state capital along with international outlets in Singapore and the US (a NZ expansion is currently in the works), which together house a headcount in excess of 600 professionals.
Within three years of its inception, Versent was featured as a rising star on Deloitte’s annual Tech Fast 50 list.
Headed by former AWS executive and one-time Ernst & Young management consultant Paul Migliorini, the ‘born in the cloud’ consultancy supports clients with a diversified offering across digital applications and experiences, data & insights, cloud foundations, identity and security solutions, and managed services. The ‘information memorandum’ sent out by Goldman Sachs noted that the company had delivered more than 1,400 projects to date.
One major carrot for potential buyers is Versent’s proprietary AWS cloud management platform Stax, with the offshoot recently signing a multi-million dollar strategic collaboration agreement with AWS itself to help support a Southeast Asia and North American expansion agenda. Stax is overseen by former AWS A/NZ managing director Adam Beavis, with ex-AWS channels and alliance head Davinia Simon recruited in 2021 to drive international growth.
Noting the increasing need for “a multi-cloud approach to enable innovation and deliver transformation initiatives”, Versent also recently branched beyond its traditional AWS base via a fresh partnership agreement with Microsoft, extending its cloud capabilities to Azure with initial solution partner status for data & artificial intelligence, infrastructure, and digital and app innovation. The Microsoft deal followed one struck with Databricks twelve months earlier.
“The expansion of our partnership highlights our continued business growth with a commitment to providing multi-cloud solutions that drive value for our customers,” commented Migliorini, who took over from Essman as CEO in mid-2021. “Our partnership will help more organisations benefit from the combination of Microsoft’s cloud solutions with Versent’s market-leading cloud expertise to enable significant and lasting transformation.”
According to the AFR report on Versent’s sale attempt, Goldman Sachs first put the feelers out more than six months ago, with indicative bids now due early next month and “buy-side mandates likely to be dealt once the second round is under way.”
The publication writes; “Should the deal fetch the mooted valuation – and this process is a test for tech company valuations which continue to swing around – it would spell a big payday for about 50 shareholders.”