Blockchain Technology Drives Converge To Add Becker-Carroll To Its Growing List Of Acquisitions
Converge Technology Partners is continuing a string of solution provider acquisitions with the purchase of Becker-Carroll to add new digital service and blockchain experience to its growing stable.
Becker-Carroll, the third acquisition of Converge since October of 2017, makes Converge one of the only solution providers with blockchain technology, said John Flores, a consultant and soon-to-be-executive for Toronto-based Converge.
"Our vendor partners are telling us there are no other channel partners touching blockchain," Flores told CRN. "I'm not seeing any other channel partners talk about blockchain. But when you turn on the TV, you see IBM and other big vendors talking about it."
Ottawa-based Becker-Carroll, on the other hand, has done multiple blockchain implementations with numerous Canadian government organizations, although the company is not at liberty to list any clients by name, Flores said.
"We're seeing an incredible uptick in demand for blockchain," he said. "Especially as the GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) deadline in Europe approaches this May. Blockchain is important for security."
Converge was founded with some investment by Canadian investment bankers with a goal of rolling up Canadian and U.S. solution providers, Flores said. He declined to say how much was invested in the company but did say that the combined revenue of the three solution providers acquired so far is "north of $300 million" Canadian dollars, or over about $240 million in U.S. currency.
Bringing blockchain technology to a broader customer base was one of the drivers behind the investment, Flores said.
"It's not easy to get investment over blockchain, but it's a bit easier than saying we want to roll up a bunch of resellers," he said. "When you have value, that's what distinguishes you in the market."
But "roll up a bunch of resellers" is what Converge is doing. The company in October acquired Norcross, Ga.-based Corus360, and in November followed up with the acquisition of Ottawa-based Northern Micro.
Flores said Corus360 brought cloud-based disaster recovery, while Northern Micro brought Converge a government presence that can tap into the Corus360 cloud offerings. Becker-Carroll will bring blockchain technology to the rest of the company.
Other acquisitions are currently being discussed, although Flores declined to provide details.
The executive team is no stranger to investor-led solution provider acquisitions. Flores until October was vice president of marketing at Pivot Technology Solutions where he worked with Shaun Maine, current president and CEO of Converge who, until February, was COO at Pivot.
Toronto-based Pivot has a long history of solution provider acquisitions, including the October 2016 acquisition of Ottawa's Teramach Technologies; the July 2012 acquisition of San Antonio, Texas-based Sigma; the August 2011 acquisition of San Antonio, Texas-based ARC; the January 2011 acquisition of Norcross, Ga.-based ProSys (ProSys is No. 55 on the 2017 Solution Provider 500 list); and the December 2010 acquisition of Huntington Beach, Calif.-based ACS.