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Earlier this month, Blackstone completed its acquisition of Civica from Partners Group, providing the company with the resources to pursue its goal of becoming a global GovTech champion (see Blackstone completes Civica acquisition).
Recently published accounts show Civica is entering this new era in its 22-year history in good shape. For the year ended 30 September 2023, Group turnover was up 7.2% to £511.0m (2022: £476.5m); however, revenue from its core software divisions (a better indicator of Civica's prospects) increased by an impressive 16.2% to £463.7m (2022: £398.9m). On a proforma basis (taking into account acquisitions and exchange rates), software revenue was up 10% to £431m (2022: £393m).
For the software business, net revenue was up 15.7% to £420.2m (2022: £363.3m), EBITDAE was up 16.0% to £130.8m (2022: £112.8m), and EBITDAE as a % of net revenue was 31.1% (2022: 31.0%). On a proforma basis, UK and Ireland (UKI) software revenue was up 10% to £319m (2022: £289m), representing 74% of total proforma software revenue for the year.
Under Blackstone's ownership, we do not expect to see any radical departure from Civica's strategy of recent years, but it will have a more customer-centric approach. At the heart of the business is its vision of becoming a global GovTech champion, and this feeds into its mission, which it defines as, "we make software that delivers critical services to citizens around the world". It will also stick to its core markets of local government, health, education, and central government, where there remains significant white space for Civica to target.
There remains significant opportunity for international growth, and we expect to see Civica's activities outside of the UK accelerate under the new ownership. The Group has completed more than 35 acquisitions in the last 10 years, and M&A will remain a strategic focus in 2024 and beyond.
Working in partnership with Blackstone, we expect the company to build on its existing public sector foundations in the UK, Australia and New Zealand (and somewhat smaller foundations in North America) to scale into a global (rather than 'multi-local') GovTech business serving citizens internationally.
TechMarketView subscribers, including UKHotViews Premium subscribers, can learn more about this new era for Civica in our expanded UKHotViewsExtra article here.
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Posted by Dale Peters at '08:25' - Tagged: results software digital public+sector govtech
RM plc has secured a significant expansion to its longstanding partnership with The International Baccalaureate (IB). The new arrangement will see the Abingdon-headquartered EdTech business support IB’s drive towards digital assessment.
RM has been working with the non-profit education foundation for 15 years, supporting its transition to e-marking. IB is now looking to push its digital transformation further by transitioning its Diploma Programme (DP) and Career-related Programme (CP) to digital assessment.
Talking to TechMarketView, Dr Matthew Glanville, Head of Assessment Principles and Practice at IB, said IB were looking to better reflect the way students interact with the world and that digital assessment presents a huge opportunity to do this whilst also improving access and enhancing inclusion for those with special educational needs.
Although the terms of the arrangement have not been revealed, the length and scale of engagement suggests this is one of the largest assessment contracts RM has won to date.
RM CEO, Mark Cook, said the partnership is perfectly aligned to where he wants the business to go, particularly its aims to develop a Global Accreditation Platform (see RM draws a line under turbulent times and sets sights on growth). It should also provide the good opportunity for RM to demonstrate its capability on an international stage, with 51% of IB schools in the Americas, 28% in EMEA and 21% in Asia-Pacific. The curriculum offered by IB is also growing rapidly in popularity, as demonstrated by 37% growth in the number of IB programmes being delivered over the last five-years.
As we reported in March, there is a new confidence and positivity within RM. It has been a challenging few years, but it looks like the worst is behind it. The IB partnership should act as a launchpad for growth in the digital assessment market. Other awarding bodies and education departments will be following IB’s progress with interest, which should lead to further opportunities for RM. We can also expect RM to increase the range of services it offers to help organisations break down some of the barriers to digital transformation of assessment e.g. access to appropriate infrastructure. The future is looking brighter for one of the original EdTech pioneers.
TechMarketView subscribers, including UKHotViews Premium subscribers, can read more about RM's partnership with IB in our expanded UKHotViewsExtra article here.
Posted by Dale Peters at '09:45' - Tagged: contract education schools assessment edtech partnership digital+transformation
We are delighted to announce that we’ll be holding our 2024 TechMarketView Evening Autumn Reception on Thursday 26 September.
Join us from 18.30-21.30 at Mall Galleries on The Mall, London, to mingle with your peers and friends in the tech sector over drinks and canapés and discuss the latest trends in the tech market with the TechMarketView team and guests.
During the evening you’ll also have the opportunity to enjoy a Private Viewing of the Royal Society of Marine Artists annual exhibition at Mall Galleries and help us celebrate our first year post MBO. This open exhibition is widely recognised as a showcase for the best in contemporary marine art, with selected work by non-members hung alongside the work of current members.
Please save the date in your diary - further information and booking details will be available shortly and we don’t want you to miss it!
Posted by TMV Team at '07:00'
