The Newry-based tech company FD Technologies has agreed to be acquired for £570 million by an American enterprise.
The purchaser is TA Associates, a private equity firm based in Boston.
Donna Troy, who leads FD Technologies, stated that the company’s board unanimously agreed the deal acknowledges the inherent worth of the enterprise and “provides suitable returns to shareholders”.
TA Associates stated its intention to retain FD Technologies’ headquarters in Newry.
Once the transaction is finalized, they will conduct an extensive evaluation of the enterprise over the course of one year.
It has warned that this might result in certain positions facing “reshuffling, decrease or relocation.”
Nevertheless, it stated that the firm was well-placed for expansion, anticipating that this growth would “lead to increased job prospects for both current and future staff members in the long run.”
FD Technologies was established in 1996 by the late Brian Conlon under the original name of First Derivatives.
He expanded it into one of Ireland’s leading tech companies, boasting approximately 3,000 employees worldwide.
The Conlon family continues to hold roughly 10% of the company, which means they will receive £57 million from this transaction.
The present CEO, Seamus Keating, holds shares valued at approximately £1.2 million.
Major restructuring
The firm has recently completed significant organizational changes over the past year with the aim of concentrating on their software offering called KX.
In December 2024, the company finalized the sale of its consulting division for a net amount totaling £205 million.
Previously, it combined its marketing technology unit, MRP, with a U.S.-based company called CONTENTgine. FD Technologies still retains a 49% stake in the consolidated entity.
The restructuring within the company occurred as an entity known as an activist investor, named Irenic Capital Management, acquired the biggest stake.
Such investors often acquire stakes in companies with the intention of instigating changes, like divesting assets.