TCI Targets Vertical MSPs for Acquisition
Specialized MSP investor firm Technology Capital Investors (TCI) is looking for a few good vertical MSPs that want some help to scale their operations. The New York-based company is looking to continue its acquisition strategy, but specifically focus on buying its way into industry verticals while at the same time help those MSP brands to grow, Managing Partner Sam Attias told MSPmentor.
Deals are structured so that TCI takes a majority stake and the owner retains a minority stake. The goal is to leverage the MSPs’ existing brand and vertical customer relationships and expertise while providing the MSP with TCI’s marketing muscle and cloud infrastructure so that it can scale, perhaps even to a national footprint.
That was the approach TCI took with Savid, a compliance and security firm in Chicago that it acquired in February. But now TCI is looking to broaden into vertical industries by targeting MSPs that cater to them.
MSP Profile
Attias says that TCI looks for IT service providers with between $.1.5 million and $10 million in annual revenues. Sixty percent of their revenues should come from a single vertical. The ideal acquisition target will have clients in their vertical that range from small to large. Plus the company should have a diverse and advanced team, strong in both engineering and operations, who are comfortable working with cloud technologies such as Citrix, VMware and Microsoft Hyper-V.
“Lastly, it’s a company that identifies with what we are doing with owners that don’t want to walk away,” Attias said.
TCI is looking for MSPs that specialize in verticals such as banking, education, finance, government, healthcare, insurance, legal, and non-profit.
The new vertical acquisition strategy builds on TCI’s existing expansion plans. Most recently the company opened an office in Canada.
