Cambridge Tech acquires US firm for Rs 60 cr

Founded in 2000 in Cambridge, MA, CellExchange provides system integration IT solutions for US Federal and US Department of Defense (DoD) customers. This is the fourth and the largest acquisition for CTE in FY08, starting with ComCreation Inc in first quarter of FY08, Reilly & Associates in second quarter and Q-Soft Systems and Solutions in third quarter. The merits of the CellExchange transaction are effective January 1, 2008, CTE stated in a press release on Wednesday.

CellExchange realised Rs 80 crore revenues in 2007. The acquisition is expected to bring in additional Rs 90 crore revenues during the current f financial year. CTE has already clocked Rs 45.68 crore revenues during the first nine months of FY08 (as on December 31, 2007), as against Rs 23.40 crore for the entire FY07. The acquisition will boost CTE's revenue run rate to approximately $40 million (Rs 160 crore) and also will increase its headcount globally to over 600.

"In addition to the revenue run rate and headcount enhancement, this acquisition will bring in many strategic advantages to CTE's portfolio by enhancing its offerings in the government sector. It will help CTE further strengthen its expertise in SOA frameworks and rapid application development (RAD). CellExchange's solutions and competency complement our existing service offerings and will enable us to serve our customers on a more comprehensive level. This would also allow better resource utilisation and improving profitability of the combined company," Bhaskar Panigrahi, chief executive officer of CTE, said.