Basingstoke: Grant Thornton advises SecureEnvoy sale to Shearwater Group

Grant Thornton’s Thames Valley Corporate Finance team has advised the shareholders of Basingstoke-based technology firm SecureEnvoy on its £20 million sale to Shearwater Group.

The acquisition (a reverse takeover under AIM rules), will see Shearwater Group plc purchase 100% of the share capital of the business. The founders will stay on to manage day-to-day operations, meaning that customers and staff will have continuity through the business’ next phase of growth.

The Grant Thornton team supported the SecurEnvoy shareholders throughout the sale process to its successful conclusion following approval of the acquisition at Shearwater Group’s General Meeting held on May 8, 2017.

Creators of Tokenless Multi Factor Authentication (MFA), SecurEnvoy was founded in 2003 by Andrew Kemshall and Stephen Watts. Following a successful period at one of the world’s leading cyber security companies, the founders were ideally placed to create and launch a pioneering SMS-based multifactor authentication product for enterprise clients.

Innovation is at the core of SecurEnvoy’s business with the patented pre-load technology providing a clear differentiator in the marketplace. Recent developments include a mobile app utilising Push technology. In addition, the business has developed a number of complementary patented products with SecurMail providing unique MFA-based email security. With widespread industry recognition, the business has grown a substantial customer base of more than 1,000 customers, including many UK and international blue-chip companies.

Andrew Kemshall, chief technology officer and co-founder of SecurEnvoy, said: “We are delighted with the outcome and enthusiastic at the prospect of working with Shearwater Group while growing the SecurEnvoy brand. Grant Thornton did a fantastic job throughout the process. They provided full support throughout the deal and, along with their technical expertise, the team were always on hand to provide advice and drive the deal forward.”

Andy Morgan, corporate finance partner and TMT sector lead at Grant Thornton UK, added: “We are pleased to have advised Andy, Steve and the team in delivering a transaction which achieves the dual objectives of realising value for their investment to date and finding a long-term partner to grow the SecurEnvoy business going forward. The combination with Shearwater creates an exciting platform for future growth.”