Mumbai-based enterprise security company Aurionpro Solutions Ltd on Wednesday said it will acquire a 51% stake in Singapore-based smart city solutions provider SC Soft Pte. Ltd for $5 million (Rs 36.75 crore) in cash.
The security solutions firm will make the investment in tranches through its wholly-owned subsidiary Aurionpro Solutions Pte Ltd. It will acquire the majority stake by December 2019 and thereafter buyout the remaining 49% share, it said in a stock market disclosure.
The acquisition will consolidate Aurionpro’s leadership in the smart transport system domain, particularly in the automated fare collection (AFC) market, the disclosure added.
An AFC system automates the ticketing system in a public transportation network.
Aurionpro will use the proceeds from the deal to expand its research and development capabilities and will ramp up the global sales of SC Soft, it said in the disclosure.
“The acquisition of SC Soft will be a strategic milestone as it will help Aurionpro strengthen its leadership in the rapidly growing AFC market,” said Paresh Zaveri, chairman and managing director of Aurionpro.
SC Soft specialises in developing end-to-end ticketing and payment solutions for public mass transportation. It has created a product for automated fare collection based on the open loop technology. Besides public transport, it also develops cash handling solutions for the banking industry. It not only designs and creates its own software and hardware but also oversees the integration and after-sales service. Founded in 2009, it has offices in Singapore, Canada, Malaysia and India.
Aurionpro offers enterprises business solutions in three primary areas – cybersecurity, digital innovation and banking. It employs over 1,200 domain and technology experts across North America, Asia and Europe.
In India, it has developed the automated fare collection systems for the metros in Nagpur and Noida. For these projects, it partnered with the State Bank of India and SC Soft, the company statement said.
The company’s consolidated revenue dropped to Rs 424.23 crore in the financial year ended 31 March 2018 as compared with Rs 502.36 crore in the previous year.
Earlier this month, Aurionpro had agreed to acquire a 51% stake in Singapore-based banking technology firm Neo.Bnk Pte Ltd for $1.5 million (Rs 10 crore).
