STI buys Symphony Data for $8 million

Atlanta-based STI Knowledge (STI) on Thursday announced that it has acquired Hyderabad-based Symphony Data, a $3-million business process outsourcing (BPO) company, for between $7 million and $8 million in a cash-stock deal.

STI itself offers BPO services and enterprise support solutions for the healthcare, insurance and commercial enterprises and had revenues of $25 million in the last fiscal.

Announcing the deal at a press conference, Satish Sanan, executive chairman and chief executive officer of STI, said that the acquisition was integral to the company's future and would enable STI to offer healthcare administration, claims processing, customer interaction, technical help desk and other vertical industries' knowledge-based services through a blended-shore delivery model.

"This acquisition is a key strategic initiative for STI Knowledge," Sanan said.

"We are focussed on improving our customers' business performance and profitability. Offering an off-shore option is a significant step in delivering on that vision and helps us proactively meet demand for quality BPO services for the benefit of our growing client base in this increasingly important market place."

It is expected that by combining forces with Symphony Data, STI can offer on-site, off-shore and now, off-shore BPO services, providing more delivery options to accommodate all customer needs and budgets.

"We expect to ramp up our employee strength from about 800 between the two organisations to about 1,500 over the next two years. This apart, we will appoint a CEO for the Indian operations in the next 60 days," Sanan said.

"We would expect to be a $250-million player by acquiring and expanding our own base quickly. We will also be looking at an Indian listing, in the BSE, as BPO companies are doing very well," he said.