We’re at the 2022 midpoint and we have an impressive list of exciting mergers and acquisitions concluded during the past six months. The total value of these M&As is estimated at around €900M (Ed.note for those with numbers disclosed). And as the investment climate is getting tougher, experts expect tech startup M&As to continue to pick up. From the acquisition of Cliff.ai by Bulgarian Gtmhub to that of Greek fintech Viva Wallet by JP Morgan and to Meta’s acquisition of Greek startup Accusonus, here are the major startup M&A deals shaping Southeast Europe’s tech startup landscape in 2022.
Bulgaria’s startup M&A list
Chaos merged with Enscape to become a global leader in 3D visualization and will continue with significant acquisitions
- Chaos, the Bulgarian provider of photorealistic rendering technology, and Enscape, a German company developing real-time rendering and design workflow technology merged with the vision to become a world leader in the 3D visualization and design workflow.
- The joint agreement is backed by two private equity firms – the American TA Associates, and the German LEA Partners which is a previous investor in Enscape.
- The new company keeps the Chaos name and will focus on developing a portfolio of visualization and computer graphics for the architecture, engineering, construction (AEC), visual effects (VFX), and product design verticals.
- Following the merger, Chaos acquired two companies dealing with architectural visualization – CG Architect and Cylindo.
US-Bulgarian Leanplum got acquired by Clevertap to build one of the world’s most powerful engines for retention marketing
- The two companies are set to build the first end-to-end user engagement and retention cloud platform.
- By combining their product stacks, Leanplum and CleverTap now serve a total customer base of over 1200 customers in more than 100 countries.
- The amount of the deal, as well as their revenue goals by the end of 2022 remain undisclosed.
3D geospatial analytics startup Enview got acquired by US-NASDAQ-listed platform Matterport
- The 3D spatial analytics startup Enview, backed by the Bulgarian venture capital firm BrightCap Ventures, was recently acquired by US NASDAQ-listed spatial analytics computing platform Matterport in a deal of $35.5M in cash.
- Enview will provide Matterport’s clients with powerful property insights and advanced business intelligence, helping governments improve national security and allowing energy businesses to monitor the condition of critical infrastructures by creating 3D real-world mappings.
Integral-led consortium acquired deeptech company Ontotext for €30M
- Integral-led investment consortium reached an agreement with Bulgarian IT company Sirma Group to acquire its subsidiary Ontotext for more than €30 million.
- Ontotext is an enterprise software and semantic technology company, planning to invest more in solutions for end customers across healthcare, biotechnology, and financial services.
Bulgarian Gtmhub acquired two companies in 2022
- Bulgarian-based OKRs management software provider Gtmhub acquired Cliff.ai (Greendeck Technologies, Ltd.), a UK-based operational intelligence software provider that uses machine learning to help teams track and analyze abnormal changes in the performance of KPIs in June.
- This is the second acquisition of Gtmhub since the beginning of 2022, following the one of the OKRs and status-tracking software Koan in February.
British public company Kin + Carta acquired Bulgarian software company Melon
- UK-based digital consultancy Kin + Carta completed its acquisition of Bulgarian software company Melon, together with its subsidiary in Kosovo called Frakton, in a deal worth approximately €27.2M.
- Melon’s fast-growing software engineering business boosts Kin + Carta’s digital transformation capabilities while expanding their service capabilities and geographic reach.
NIK acquired Yara’s software and hardware businesses to bring precision agriculture to farmers in Bulgaria and Romania
- NIK will integrate Yara’s sales and service teams in the two countries, and over the next 12 months, the Bulgarian company will also merge the two platforms TechnoFarm and AgroOffice.
- Yara is a leading global fertilizer manufacturer that will help NIK continue implementing technologies for precision agriculture in Bulgaria, with a focus on offering solutions for automation and optimization of processes.
Madrid-based WOOM got acquired by Apricity to expand the first virtual fertility clinic
- Woom, the Madrid-based AI fertility app with a Bulgarian engineering team, was acquired by Apricity, the world’s first virtual fertility clinic in May.
- The combined technology of the two companies would provide tech solutions for the entire fertility pathway: from conception guidance and tracking, to treatment and throughout all the stages of pregnancy.
- The virtual clinic will focus on four key areas of acceleration: improved lead generation, geographical expansion, increased user engagement, and AI optimization.
Bulgarian telecom operator A1 acquired 100% of the IT company Stemo
- The biggest Bulgarian telecom operator A1 Bulgaria in terms of revenue announced the acquisition of the IT company STEMO.
- The acquisition is part of A1’s long-term strategy to develop and assert itself as a market leader in the ICT services.
- STEMO has more than 30 years of history in the Bulgarian market of information and communication technologies.
Bulgarian online supermarkets Supermag – Gastronom merged
- Bulgarian online supermarkets that offer delivery services, Gastronom and Supermag, merged and Gastronom acquired major control over Supermag.
- The companies will continue working as two different brands: Gastronom will focus on end users, Supermag – on business clients.
- The Supermag – Gastronom merger makes the new entity the second largest player on the market after eBag.
Romania’s startup M&A list
Romanian Softbinator Technologies announced the start of the procedures for taking over Timisoara-based [e-spres-oh]
- Softbinator Technologies, a Romanian software development company specialized in the design, development, and launch of innovative products, is on its way of acquiring [e-spres-oh], an IT company from Timisoara.
- It aims to consolidate its presence in West Romania and include new clients in its portfolio, mainly from the USA.
- [e-spres-oh] was founded in 2012 in Timisoara, specializing in software development, consulting, testing, and UI/UX. In 2019, [e-spres-oh] was sold to Alpine Group, a US investment group.
Romanian-founded wellbeing company 7Card got acquired by global player Gympass
- Bucharest-based wellbeing and fitness company Benefit Seven (7Card), which offers employees access to a network of sport and relaxation venues, has been acquired by global player Gympass.
- Both 7Card and Gympass want to reinvent wellbeing, making it accessible to as many people as possible.
Mozaik Investments acquired a majority stake in Romanian Fintech Pago as the startup scales in Europe
- Romanian Fintech Pago, which offers an app to manage payments, announced that Mozaik Investments has acquired 51.12% of its shares from Banca Transilvania.
- Mozaik Investments is a Romanian-Austrian investment company that targets companies in CEE with high growth potential, joining them with both capital and financial know-how.
- Pago is a mobile application for managing and paying all the utility bills from one account with real-time updates.
Elrond acquired Twispay to further develop its e-money payments
- Romanian fintech blockchain startup Elrond obtained approval from the National Bank of Romania to acquire Twispay.
- Twispay is a financial institution in Romania, licensed and authorized to provide payment services and to issue electronic money, according to the legislation in force.
- Elrond seeks to further develop the e-money payments framework and complement it with its scalable blockchain technology.
MERO acquired Logbox to boost the digitalization of beauty salons
- Romanian SaaS beauty marketplace MERO acquired Logbox – a local software company that offers an easy-to-book solution for beauty salons and healthcare facilities.
- MERO offers a platform for hair and beauty appointments where professionals can showcase their services, synchronize their bookings digitally, and manage the saloon’s booking history.
- With the acquisition, MERO can now offer its B2B clients the ability to send automated SMS to users to remind them of the booking, subscriptions, and access of reports.
Romanian Metagame got acquired by global video game publisher Fortis
- Romanian gaming company Metagame was acquired by a new global video game developer and publisher Fortis, founded by top games executives.
- Following the acquisition, the team will focus on creating the next generation of the games-as-a-service model, improving social experiences and fostering connections.
Greece’s startup M&A list
Greek Viva Wallets got partially acquired by JP Morgan, possibly reaching a valuation of €1.5B
- American JP Morgan Chase acquired a 49% stake in the Greek cloud-based neobank Viva Wallet in a deal, reportedly estimated to be around €700M, that turned the latter into a unicorn.
- From a banking software development company, Viva Wallet has grown to become the first European fully cloud-based neobank providing localized payment and credit services to SMEs.
- The strategic investment is a natural fit for the strategy of J.P. Morgan’s Payments business focused on developing its omnichannel merchant acquiring capabilities offered to European SMEs.
Facebook owner acquired AI audio startup Accusonus and will build a Metaverse R&D center
- Accusonus, a Greek-founded audio applications development company, was acquired by Meta in a deal of undisclosed amount that was estimated between €70M and €100M.
- Meta plans to establish a Metaverse R&D center in Greece with a total investment of up to $200M.
- Accusonus is one of the world’s pioneers in the development of AI in digital music production and processing, developing its own patented Machine Learning and AI technology to enable professionals and non-professionals to directly repair the sound in their videos.
Greek customer insights startup Pollfish got acquired by American company Prodege
- The consumer insights and market research software Pollfish sealed a strategic deal with Prodege, an online marketing, consumer polling, and market research company.
- With the acquisition, Prodege ensures that its partners have access to cost-effective research solutions for disclosing information to consumers and making decisions quickly.
Ocado acquired Greek robotics startup Myrmex for €10M to accelerate automation in retail
- UK tech company Ocado Group acquired Greek robotics startup Myrmex in a deal worth €10.2M, looking to accelerate the development of intelligent asset handling systems for the Ocado Smart Platform.
- The acquisition of Myrmex enables faster rollout of Automated Frameload solutions (AFL) across Ocado Group’s global customer fulfillment center (CFC) footprint, as well as open up new opportunities for the development of automation solutions for its Platform.
Greek translation platform Transifex grew after acquisition by PARC Partners
- Greek translation and localization automation platform Transifex was acquired by US search fund PARC Partners. The investment seeks to fuel continued growth with additional capital, as well as management resources focused on customer value creation.
- Transifex is a platform that powers the process of launching digital products and content into multiple languages, present in more than 70 countries and working with 1400+ tech and global enterprises.
