IBM To Acquire Irish Payment-Services Firm Equitant

In the latest in a string of modest acquisitions aimed at bolstering its business-services capabilities, IBM on Wednesday said it will purchase a Dublin-based payments-outsourcing company.

Under the deal, terms of which were not disclosed, IBM will acquire order-to-cash service provider Equitant. The 200-employee company helps its clients more quickly convert customer orders to cash in the bank through a range of services, including invoicing, collections, and dispute resolution. Present or past customers include Cisco Systems, Hewlett-Packard, and Lucent Technologies. Equitant maintains North American offices in Stamford, Conn.

The acquisition is subject to regulatory approval in Europe. No date for completing the deal was given.

Over the past several months, IBM has acquired a number of business-services companies, including application service provider Corio, procurement specialist KeyMRO, and India-based customer-service firm Daksh eServices. In a December interview with InformationWeek, Ginni Rometty, managing director of IBM's business-consulting unit, said the company would look to acquire providers of businesses services that rely heavily on IT. Says Rometty, "Our strategy going forward would link acquisitions to our high-value spaces."