Macdonald Henderson, led by corporate director Laura McKnight has advised the shareholders of Ping Network Solutions (“Ping”) on the disposal of the company to Luxembourg – based Sword Group, the Euronext listed IT and digital transformation group.
Ping is a multi-award-winning Systems Integrator & Managed Service Provider operating from a purpose-built, state of the art office that features a bespoke, 24×7 Network Operations Centre (NOC).
The company was started in 2010 by individuals with a determination to create a world-class systems integrator. Having worked in the industry for many years, the Ping team felt strongly that the Scottish market deserved a more focused solutions provider with quality engineers that, crucially, would be based locally.
Sword UK employs 430 staff and more than 100 contractors with primary locations in Aberdeen, Glasgow, London, Houston, and Rijswijk – to which it will now add Ping’s offices in Glasgow, Bellshill and Aberdeen.
The deal, for an undisclosed sum, should let Sword offer its clients a “complete range of solutions” – adding to its existing work on data insights, digital transformation and software development.
Ping forecasts a revenue of about €13m for 2022.
As an organisation with high-quality engineering expertise certified to Cisco CCIE level, Ping design, supply, implement and provide the ongoing support and management of networking solutions across a global customer base spanning all major market verticals including Energy, Financial Services Education, Public Sector, Manufacturing and Construction. This is enabled by holding key manufacturer Partnerships with best-of-breed organisations such as Cisco (Gold Partner) & Palo Alto Networks.
Both parties are delighted about the possibilities this relationship brings. In terms of the breadth and depth of support offered to the combined customer base and the innovation that can be delivered in industry sectors, Ping’s experienced team of engineers offer exceptional levels of skill for client’s demands and are experts in their field with market-leading experience and accreditations.
Dave Bruce, CEO of Sword UK said:
“I’m delighted to welcome the Ping team into Sword. This deal will allow us to deliver a more complete range of solutions to our customers. The Ping team has an exceptional level of skill and domain experience and is focused on delivering quality solutions – they will be a great fit within Sword. Our shared core values will ensure we continue to provide an exceptional result for our customers and the wider Sword Group”.
Terry Neill, Business Unit Director of Ping, said:
“Ping has a long-standing working relationship with Sword in the UK and is very excited to be joining the Sword Group. Our experience in delivering network and security solutions will complement Sword’s current service offerings. We are looking forward to furthering our growth within the Sword Group”.
About Macdonald Henderson, the Ping team commented:
“The support we’ve had from Macdonald Henderson and Laura McKnight throughout this has been second to none. Laura has guided us through the process from start to finish to ensure we correctly represent the business and conducted this in the same professional manner we’ve undertaken throughout the course of running the business. Laura was always on hand before, during and after the due diligence process to ensure our interests were correctly represented, to explain any complex components and ultimately keep us motoring along efficiently to the successful completion of the deal. It has been a great help to have someone as experienced in our corner, as it’s not a transaction process we’d done before so the level of professional expertise, care and attention to detail applied to our engagement gave everyone the comfort that we were in good hands and making the best decisions.”
We are pleased to have advised the Ping team on this milestone transaction, and wish the combined business, management team and all stakeholders every success for the future.
Advisers to Ping Network Solutions: Macdonald Henderson (legal); Consilium Chartered Accountants (corporate finance and tax);
Advisers to Sword Group: Burness Paull LLP (legal); Azets (tax).
