Focus Group continues M&A spree with third buyout

The reseller acquires Prism to improve cybersecurity capabilities

Focus Group has acquired managed services provider Prism to mark its third buyout in less than a month.

Founded in 2001, Cheshire-based Prism provides IT support, dedicated tech, as well as sales and support teams to customers across the UK SME marketplace.

The addition of the MSP brings more than 6,000 end-users throughout the country and a team of 50 people to its new owner.

The newly acquired company has also flexed its own M&A muscles this year with its takeover of Warwickshire IT services and support provider Inside IT in January.

Focus Group said Prism’s organic growth, coupled with its business model and suite of complementary vendors and services, were all factors that led to the acquisition.

The expansion also brings a flagship MSP proposition and an understanding of the security landscape to the table, with renowned specialisation in the financial services sector.

“The pace of innovation in IT and cybersecurity is accelerating in response to increasingly sophisticated cyber threats, so it’s crucial we continually evolve our capabilities to meet market demands,” said Laurence Glen, IT director at Focus Group.

“Prism’s people, portfolio, ambitions and ethos provide the exacting combination of attributes we envisioned when we began our search, and the investment is set to significantly benefit our customers through an expanded range of services.”

Ben Higginbotham, MD at Prism added: “We are delighted to be able to continue our next phase of strategic growth as part of Focus Group, where we believe we can harness their proven ability to scale in the technology space as well as being able to provide the opportunity for career development for our team.

“These were vital factors in our decision to partner with Focus Group and we are excited to see this progression.”

The latest merger marks the third deal for the acquisitive MSP since the beginning of November, following its takeovers of TMAC and Contact Systems.

The business snapped up Silver Lining, Entropie, Cellular Solutions, Midland Telecom, Datasharp, Pinnacle, and RPM Communications early this year.