Leading digital product agency Somo, has been acquired by global digital specialist CI&T. SI Partners acted as lead sell-side adviser to Somo, identifying the purchaser and negotiating the transaction to completion.
Somo was co-founded in 2009 by Nick Hynes and Carl Uminski and is one of the fastest-growing digital strategy and product agencies with almost 300 employees. Delivering digital ambitions for some of the world’s biggest brands and notable start-ups, Somo has pioneered over 1,000 products for brands such as Audi, HSBC, Virgin Media, Vanguard, and Vodafone.
CI&T is a global digital specialist and partner in end-to-end digital transformation. It has global operations and a 26-year history of accelerating business impact through complete and scalable digital solutions.
The new partnership will enhance CI&T’s operations in Europe and will add almost 300 new digital specialists with deep expertise in digital products across a range of several verticals, as well as a strong leadership team with a proven track record.
“Somo and CI&T have a similar culture – people first, innovation-driven and a strong reputation with global brands. Together we will be able to combine the power of a global company with the strength of a strong European player”, says Cesar Gon, CI&T’s founder and CEO.
“It’s an honor to join the CI&T family, who, like Somo, is a founder-led company with shared values. We have no doubt that this deal will provide a successful future for all of our stakeholders; including our people and clients. We are committed to help achieve CI&T’s international expansion across EMEA, leveraging the extensive experience of Somo’s leadership team in growing businesses globally”
Nick Hynes, CEO and Carl Uminski, COO and Co-Founders of Somo.
The base purchase price for the acquisition is £49 million (US$ 67 million), of which up to 25% will be paid in the form of Class A Common shares of CI&T, plus an earn-out clause of up to £9.8 million (US$ 13 million) based on future performance. Somo recorded approximately £25 million (US$ 34 million) in Net Revenue in 2021, a 41% growth compared to 2020. The completion of this transaction is subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions and is expected to happen during the first quarter of 2022.