Data & Analytics Acquisitions in 2020

Bloomberg L.P. has completed its acquisition of Second Measure, a Bay Area–based consumer transaction data analytics company. The deal brings Second Measure’s proprietary transaction dataset and analytics into Bloomberg’s product suite to expand alternative data and real‑time consumer insights for investors and corporate clients.

Converge Technology Solutions Corp. signed a definitive agreement to acquire CarpeDatum Consulting, Inc., a Denver-based IBM Analytics consulting firm and Alteryx Preferred Partner. The acquisition, expected to close January 4, 2021, adds analytics, AI and performance-management capabilities to Converge's AI & Analytics practice and supports expansion across its Central and Western U.S. regions.

Bain & Company has acquired Sutton Place Strategies (SPS), a deal origination tool and transaction database used by private equity firms, corporate M&A teams, and deal advisors. The acquisition adds SPS's proprietary transaction data and analytics to Bain's suite of data offerings to enhance deal sourcing, pipeline analytics, and M&A advisory capabilities.

Verisk has acquired Philadelphia-based behavioral data intelligence company Jornaya from growth equity investor Edison Partners. The acquisition expands Verisk’s data and analytics capabilities—particularly in marketing and consumer intent signals—across insurance, financial services and related end markets.

Numerator has acquired Information Machine LLC to expand its consumer-sourced purchase and media data capabilities by integrating Information Machine's APIs into Numerator's Receipt Hog mobile app. The acquisition will incorporate high-volume loyalty card, mobile app purchase and media viewing data into Numerator's consumer panel and will continue to operate Information Machine's SaaS platform under the name Numerator Link.

Blacksmith Applications, a Strattam-backed SaaS provider of trade promotion management and revenue management solutions, has acquired TABS Analytics, a technology-enabled analytics and shopper-insights firm. The deal combines Blacksmith's trade promotion software with TABS' data science, virtual shopper research and category management capabilities to expand revenue-management and analytics offerings for CPG and retail clients.

J.D. Power has acquired Inventory Command Center (ICC), a SaaS-based automotive inventory management and VIN-level data syndication platform, and will integrate the business into its Autodata Solutions division. The acquisition expands J.D. Power's vehicle inventory merchandising and VIN data capabilities to better serve dealerships, manufacturers and third-party car-shopping sites as electric vehicles and new automation technologies increase VIN-specific data needs.

Maven, via its Maven UK Regional Buyout Fund, has led a £17 million management buyout of Envitia Group, a Horsham‑based data and geospatial technology and services provider. The fund committed £15.25 million to support the management team, led by CEO Nabil Lodey, to accelerate product development (AI/ML), expand services and grow into new sectors.

NTT DATA Services has agreed to acquire Hashmap, a data engineering and analytics consultancy headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, to strengthen its cloud data, analytics and AI capabilities. Hashmap— a Snowflake Premier Partner with Databricks and other cloud partnerships—will expand NTT DATA Services' ability to help clients accelerate cloud data modernization and operationalize AI.

Centene Corporation has completed its acquisition of Apixio, a San Mateo–based healthcare analytics company that provides AI-powered technology solutions. Apixio will remain operationally independent within Centene's Health Care Enterprises group as Centene seeks to accelerate digitization and expand its analytics and AI capabilities.

NuWave Solutions has acquired BigBear Inc., a San Diego–based provider of cloud-based big data analytics, AI and geospatial solutions for the U.S. national security community. The acquisition — NuWave's first since being acquired by private equity firm AE Industrial Partners earlier in 2020 — expands NuWave's data analytics, AI and cloud capabilities to better serve federal defense and intelligence customers. Terms were not disclosed.

Conclusion will acquire Amsterdam-based data specialist Hot ITem, pending regulatory approval from the Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets. The deal brings Hot ITem’s ~250 data, BI and analytics specialists into Conclusion’s ecosystem to strengthen its data engineering, advanced analytics and data-management capabilities.

Enhesa, the global EHS compliance intelligence platform backed by CGE Partners, has acquired Chemical Watch, a Shrewsbury-headquartered provider of regulatory intelligence, news and training for product safety professionals. The deal is Enhesa's first add-on since CGE Partners backed the company in July 2020 and expands Enhesa's capability and presence in the chemicals compliance market.

Zonda (formerly Hanley Wood | Meyers Research), a MidOcean Partners–backed housing data and research firm, has acquired Belfiore Real Estate Consulting, a Phoenix-area residential market research and advisory firm founded by Jim Belfiore. The acquisition expands Zonda's presence in Arizona and strengthens its local housing market data and advisory capabilities for homebuilders and related customers.

Accenture has agreed to acquire End-to-End Analytics, a Palo Alto–based analytics and data science consultancy with additional offices in Brazil. The acquisition brings more than 70 analytics professionals and specialized assets in supply chain, forecasting, pricing, marketing and customer analytics into Accenture's Applied Intelligence practice to expand its analytics, AI and data capabilities across the Americas.

Spiceworks Ziff Davis (SWZD) has acquired Aberdeen, a provider of behavioral-based intent data, demand generation programs, and industry research, from Halyard Capital. Aberdeen will operate as a wholly-owned subsidiary of SWZD and the deal expands SWZD's intent-data capabilities and research offerings to better connect technology buyers and sellers.

Ascent, a Horizon Capital-backed UK software strategy and development firm, has acquired Mango Solutions, one of the UK’s largest data science consulting firms. The undisclosed deal adds about 65 employees and approximately £5M in annual revenue to Ascent and is an add-on to its existing platform business.

Power Digital announced the acquisition of DataQ, a customer activation and targeting technology, on November 18, 2020. The purchase brings DataQ's proprietary algorithms and ETL capabilities into Power Digital's nova platform to expand the firm's customer data, activation and analytics capabilities for e-commerce and digital marketing clients.

Deutsche Börse AG will acquire an approximately 80% majority stake in Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS), valuing ISS at USD 2,275 million for 100% of the business. Genstar Capital and current ISS management will retain about a 20% stake; the transaction strengthens Deutsche Börse's ESG data, analytics and governance capabilities and is expected to close subject to regulatory approvals.

RKD Group, a Dallas-based provider of fundraising and marketing solutions for nonprofit organizations, has acquired Data Management, Inc. (DMI), a North Carolina data services company. DMI will operate within RKD Insights to expand RKD’s data management, reporting and analytic capabilities for nonprofit fundraising and marketing, maintaining existing client integrations with CRMs such as Blackbaud and Salesforce.

Los Angeles-based private equity firm Diversis Capital made a strategic growth investment in Retail Finance Intelligence PTY. LTD. (RFi Group), a data-driven insights provider to the global financial services industry. The founders retain significant minority ownership and will continue to lead the company as it expands its technical Data-as-a-Service capabilities and geographic footprint.

Terminus, the Atlanta-based account-based marketing (ABM) platform, acquired GrowFlare, a predictive account-profiling and psychographic data provider, to integrate GrowFlare's AI-driven account intelligence into the Terminus Engagement Hub. The acquisition strengthens Terminus's ability to identify and prioritize ideal accounts and deliver more personalized, timely outreach for B2B sales and marketing teams.

Entercom Communications Corp. has acquired direct-to-consumer sports data and iGaming affiliate platform QL Gaming Group in an all-cash transaction valued at approximately $32 million. The deal brings QL Gaming's BetQL app, analytics and subscription capabilities into Entercom's sports audio, podcast and RADIO.COM ecosystem to expand data-driven offerings for sports fans.

ZoomInfo acquired EverString, an AI-powered B2B data provider, to expand its company and contact data assets and enhance its go-to-market intelligence platform. The deal (announced Nov. 5, 2020) will integrate EverString’s machine-learning-derived company records and professional profiles into ZoomInfo’s Data Cloud; financial terms were not disclosed.

CGE Partners has invested in Aurora Energy Research to support the company's next phase of global growth, with 22C Capital co‑investing and Steve Halliday joining the board as Chairman. The investment backs founder and CEO Dr. John Feddersen and the existing management team to accelerate international expansion, new product development and future M&A; Aurora is an Oxford‑based provider of power and energy market data, analytics, reports and software with c.148 employees.

DoubleVerify, a New York–based digital media measurement and analytics software platform, agreed to a $350 million investment led by Tiger Global Management with participation from Fidelity, BlackRock and Neuberger Berman. The capital will be used primarily to purchase shares from existing shareholders and to support DoubleVerify's continued product development and global growth; Providence Equity Partners will remain the majority investor.

Qlik has acquired Blendr.io, an embedded integration and automation (iPaaS) platform, to add real-time connectivity and process automation across 500+ SaaS applications into Qlik’s cloud data and analytics platform. The Blendr.io team and technology will be integrated into Qlik’s product and go-to-market efforts to expand Active Intelligence capabilities; terms were not disclosed.

Continental Mapping Consultants, a Bluestone Investment Partners-backed geospatial company, has acquired TSG Solutions, Inc., a Carlsbad-based provider of situational awareness, GIS services and proprietary software (ViSAR, SiteScene). The add-on acquisition strengthens Continental Mapping's national security and critical-infrastructure geospatial capabilities and expands its presence in California.

FactSet has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Truvalue Labs, an AI-driven provider of ESG data and analytics, to integrate its daily ESG signals and expand FactSet’s sustainability and analytics offerings. The transaction, announced Oct. 20, 2020, is expected to close later in the year and was not expected to have a material impact on FactSet’s fiscal 2021 results.

Prometheus Group has acquired Utopia Global, Inc., a provider of data quality, data migration and data governance software and services. The deal — the fifth add-on since Genstar Capital invested in Prometheus — expands Prometheus' asset management platform with Utopia's SAP-integrated master data management and machine-learning capabilities.

Focus Technology, a Boston-based IT infrastructure and managed services provider, has acquired Boston-based data engineering firm IntegritD to expand its data management, analytics and cloud data engineering capabilities. The deal is intended to strengthen Focus's ability to help customers store, secure and manage data across data centers and cloud environments.

Appriss Inc. has acquired Securitec Screening Solutions, a Roanoke-based provider of court data and RPA-driven research for the background screening industry. The deal brings Securitec into the Appriss Insights division to expand Appriss's court-data assets and strengthen its Risk Intelligence and wholesale data platform.

Idera, Inc. has acquired Qubole, Inc., a cloud-native open data lake platform, which will join Idera's Database Tools division alongside brands such as WhereScape and AquaFold. The deal expands Idera's data management and analytics capabilities by adding Qubole's cross-cloud data lake, pipeline and ML workload orchestration technology.

Advantage Capital made a $2.1 million growth capital investment in Las Vegas-based market research firm Precision Opinion to provide working capital for product development, sales and marketing, and talent acquisition. The financing, made in connection with the Nevada New Markets Jobs Act and as part of the Silver State Growth Capital Initiative, will support Precision Opinion's continued growth and hiring plans (the company currently employs more than 700 people and plans to add ~150).

IRI, a provider of big data and predictive analytics for the CPG and retail industries, has acquired Retail Solutions, Inc. (RSi), a leading provider of supply chain and on‑shelf availability analytics for CPG manufacturers and retailers. The acquisition adds RSi’s supply chain solutions and large retail/warehouse-level data assets to IRI’s Liquid Data platform to enhance end-to-end supply chain visibility and analytics capabilities; financial terms were not disclosed.

Refinitiv has acquired The Red Flag Group, a Hong Kong-based provider of due diligence, workflow and risk-rating solutions, adding roughly 300 employees and 15 offices to its due diligence capabilities. The deal expands Refinitiv's customer and third‑party risk offering by combining The Red Flag Group's corporate compliance technology and client base with Refinitiv's data assets such as World-Check.

New Capital Partners (NCP) has made a growth investment in Precision Business Solutions, LLC, a Dallas-based data analytics and market intelligence provider founded by Colin Campbell. NCP will partner with Precision’s management to accelerate technology, data collection, and commercialization efforts to better serve professional supply market customers across North America and Europe.

MarketCast has acquired Deductive (formerly Dativa), a team of Oxford-trained data scientists, to broaden its data science and advanced analytics capabilities for media, entertainment and brand clients. The acquisition brings Deductive's expertise in combining first- and third-party data, audience measurement and predictive analytics into MarketCast's research and insights offering.

Stirling Square Capital Partners’ Fourth Fund has made an additional investment in DOCU Nordic Group Holdings AB and becomes the majority shareholder, while TA Associates acquires a significant minority stake from Stirling Square’s Third Fund. The investment will support DOCU Nordic’s product and geographic expansion—including recent acquisition of Vortal in Portugal—and accelerate buy-and-build growth across construction, real estate and healthcare markets.

Dynata, the global first-party data and insights platform, acquired CrowdLab, a digital ethnography solution, to expand its qualitative research capabilities and integrate in-the-moment consumer insights into the Dynata Insights Platform. The acquisition enables Dynata to combine broad quantitative reach with contextual qualitative customer moments to provide deeper, action-oriented insights for brands and agencies.

Medallia, the experience management SaaS leader, acquired consumer insights platform Sense360 for approximately $44 million in cash. The acquisition brings Sense360’s real-time consumer and competitive intelligence into Medallia’s Experience Cloud to expand its customer intelligence and benchmarking capabilities across restaurants, retail and CPG clients.

3Cloud, a Gryphon Investors-backed Microsoft Azure services firm, has acquired the consulting arm of Pragmatic Works to expand its data & analytics capabilities and U.S. geographic footprint. The deal creates the largest Azure-focused services firm in the U.S.; Pragmatic Works' training business will remain a separate, independently owned company.

Congruity360 has acquired SEVEN10, the developer of Storfirst360, to bolster its data migration and information management capabilities. The acquisition brings SEVEN10's unstructured data migration software and expertise into Congruity360's Intelligent Migration and data governance offerings, enabling deeper content-level classification and secure cloud-ready migrations for enterprise customers.

Funds advised by Providence Strategic Growth (PSG), the growth equity affiliate of Providence Equity Partners, have made a growth equity investment in Semarchy to support product innovation and accelerate go-to-market expansion. Terms were not disclosed; the capital will fund Semarchy’s Intelligent Data Hub product development and customer growth initiatives.

Appriss Inc., a provider of technology, data, and analytics solutions, acquired Utah-based Typhoon Data to expand its healthcare sanctions and credentialing data offerings and integrate those capabilities into the Appriss Insights platform. The acquisition adds Typhoon's healthcare compliance and credentialing data products, enhancing Appriss' ability to mitigate workforce and compliance risk for healthcare customers and consumer reporting agencies.

Change Healthcare acquired PROMETHEUS Analytics from Altarum to bring the industry-standard episode-of-care definitions and value-based payment analytics into its HealthQX value-based care platform. The acquisition is intended to accelerate adoption of value-based reimbursement models by giving payers and provider networks integrated analytics to optimize payment models, evaluate provider performance and improve network efficiency.

Qlik has acquired the assets and intellectual property of Knarr Analytics to enhance real-time collaboration, data exploration and insight capture within the Qlik Sense analytics cloud platform. The acquisition brings Knarr's collaboration and insight-capture capabilities into Qlik's Active Intelligence vision and will be integrated into Qlik's cloud platform; terms were not disclosed.

Studio Media Group acquired Darwin CX, a Toronto-based customer experience and subscription management platform, from ZoomerMedia and will integrate it with its Palm Coast Data unit to accelerate data-driven customer acquisition and retention capabilities. The deal brings Darwin CX's real-time analytics and AI-driven campaign tools into Studio Media's portfolio to provide publishers and membership organizations faster, more actionable marketing insights.

Milliman, Inc. acquired Torch Insight from Leavitt Partners to combine Torch Insight's healthcare market data and analytics with Milliman's MedInsight ecosystem. The deal expands Milliman's SaaS health market intelligence capabilities, providing clients a more comprehensive, market-centered analytics solution.

Health Catalyst, Inc. entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Vitalware, LLC, a Yakima, Washington–based provider of revenue workflow optimization and analytics SaaS for healthcare organizations. Vitalware brings Best in KLAS chargemaster management, revenue integrity, and price transparency solutions that expand Health Catalyst’s CFO offering; the deal is expected to close in Q3–Q4 2020 and will be funded with a mix of stock and cash.