UK firm buys majority stake in IIS Infotech

LONDON, DEC 5: A British computer software company, Flexbile Information System, has announced acquisition of 76 per cent stake in India's ...

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LONDON, DEC 5: A British computer software company, Flexbile Information System, has announced acquisition of 76 per cent stake in India’s software company, IIS Infotech Limited, in a deal worth over 22 million pound sterling.

The British FI Group PLC, a market leader in United Kingdom in the stand alone applications management market, said it would be bidding also for the remaining 24 per cent equity of the New Delhi-based IIS Infotech limited.

The group also announced that it had purchased the business of IIS PLC, a separately owned UK company based in Langely, Berkshire, which is the primary sales channel in the United Kingdom of the IIS Infotech group.Soon after announcing acquisition of the leading Indian software organisation, which has offices in Bombay, Cochin, Bangalore and Chennai, the FI group said it would going for a rights issue in London to raise 14.6 million pound sterling for the deal. The IIS Infotech group’s primary area of specialisation are the provision of offshore applications management services across a range of information systems and other services include on site it personnel, year 2000 services, it education and training and other software related services.

Commenting on the acquisition of the Indian company, deputy chairman and chief executive of the FI group Hilary Cooper, said, “after much research we concluded that India best met our criteria and IIS Infotech was selected as our preferential partner. This will not only provide us the offshore capability we have been seeking but also represents our groups first step overseas.” The major foray by FI software group into India signals possibilities of major British business and trading groups trying to shift their corporate affairs offshore on the line of British Airways and Swissair. According to information here, IIS Infotech showed unadjusted profits before taxation of 1.5 million pounds and net assets of 4.9 million pounds last year.