Case in Point  Infosys Acquires Expert Info Services (Australia)

In its first major acquisition, Infosys Technologies, a leading Indian information technology (IT) company, has bought a 100% stake in Australia-based Expert Information Services Pty.Ltd. for approximately US$22.9 million. The Australian company will be renamed Infosys Technologies (Australia) Pty Ltd.

Founded in 1994, Expert is one of Australia's leading IT service providers specializing in the design, building and integration of business solutions. For the year ended June 30, 2003, the company earned a revenue of US$34.6 million with a net profit of US$5.2 million.

The Infosys Founder, Chairman and Chief Mentor N.R. Narayana Murthy says,

"Ever since we were listed on the Nasdaq in 1999, and till the recent American Depository Receipt (ADR) issue, we have maintained that we will use the capital for possible acquisitions. We were looking for a company whose values were similar to those of Infosys. We have seen these qualities in Expert."

Expert's board of directors will be reconstituted after the transaction to comprise six directors nominated by Infosys and two by Expert.

"The merger with Infosys is a perfect fit with Expert's business strategy. The new entity will allow us to continue delivering high-quality, leading edge solutions to our existing and new customers with an extraordinary value proposition based on the global delivery model of Infosys," Gary Ebeyan, the head of Expert, said. Expert has 330 employees and hopes to "revolutionise" its work for the Australian market post acquisition.