The Murugappa group has divested its shareholding in Laserwords, a pre-press publishing BPO entity, to SPi Global, a Philippines-based outsourcing services provider.
The group said in a press release the Murugappa Group entities — Carborundum Universal Ltd, Parry Agro Industries Ltd, Ambadi Enterprises Ltd and few other group entities — have divested their shareholding (100 per cent) in Laserwords.
Carborundum Universal, a listed company, had controlling stake of 44 per cent in Laserwords. It has divested its shareholding in Laserwords for Rs 50 crore, Carborundum said in a notice to the BSE. Going by this, the valuation works out to Rs 113.6 crore.
Founded in 1983, Laserwords is an outsourcing partner for some of the leading educational, academic, and professional publishers. It provides a range of solutions such as production, editorial, multimedia, conversion and technology. In 2001, Carborundum, which is primarily engaged in manufacturing of abrasives, ceramics and refractories, acquired controlling stake in Laserwords.
Carborundum had invested Rs 27 crore in Laserwords, said a company spokesperson.
SPi Global, which has been in the content solutions business for over 30 years, has facilities in Chennai and Puducherry. It focuses on scientific, technical and medical publishing.
“This strategic acquisition will complement SPi Global's strong presence in the scientific, technical, medical and legal verticals with Laserwords' established foothold in the education sector. This will expand and deepen our engagements with existing clients and also attract prospective clients,” said Mr Maulik Parekh, Global President and CEO, Spi Global.
SPi Global has 15,000 employees in 24 locations worldwide. Avendus Capital Inc was the financial advisor to SPi Global for this transaction. Laserwords, which has 1,300 employees, has production facilities across Chennai and the US.