ACA Group and Foreside Financial Group, both providers of GRC tools in the financial services industry, have signed a definitive agreement to combine their companies.
Upon completion of the transaction, expected in the first half of 2022, Genstar Capital, which previously provided financial backing to Foreside, will become the majority owner of the combined business, acquiring controlling interest in ACA from Starr Investment Holdings. ACA Group CEO Shvetank Shah will become CEO of the new company, which will have 1,100 employees in 16 global offices.
The merger is expected to bring together ACA’s lauded technology, regulatory compliance, cybersecurity, ESG and performance capabilities with Foreside’s distribution, compliance consulting and broker-dealer capabilities, creating an end-to-end GRC platform for financial services firms. The transaction is subject to customary regulatory approvals and closing conditions.
This deal comes just a couple of months after ACA Group announced it had acquired Catelas, adding patented machine-learning technology to the ComplianceAlpha platform.
About ACA
ACA is a governance, risk and compliance (GRC) advisor, offering its flagship platform, ComplianceAlpha, to firms in the financial services industry. Learn more at www.acaglobal.com.
About Foreside
Foreside is a provider of distribution and compliance services to clients across the asset management industry, including investment advisors, registered broker-dealers and traditional and alternative asset managers. Learn more at www.foreside.com.
About Genstar
Genstar Capital is a leading private equity firm with $33 billion of assets under management that targets investments in the financial services, industrials, healthcare and software industries. Learn more at www.gencap.com.
