Wiley completes £100m mthree acquisition

Education services provider mthree has been acquired by US-based firm John Wiley & Sons Inc in a £100m deal.

The firm has reported rapid growth since its inception in 2010, and now boasts 600 employees and bases in 20 cities across four continents.

It specialises in finding, training and placing job-ready technology talent with leading corporations worldwide, primarily leading financial institutions, technology companies and government agencies.

John Wiley & Sons has completed its acquisition from ECI Partners LLP in a deal which will see mthree shareholders receive approximately $129m.

ECI invested in mthree in August 2018, and Business Leader understands it has generated a 2.7x return and more than 100% IRR in less than 18 months.

Wiley CEO Brian Napack said: “Wiley is committed to bridging the gap between education output and industry need.

“The acquisition of mthree advances Wiley’s leadership in powering the high-demand, high-potential careers that are fuelling the global knowledge economy.

“CEO Alex Headley and his team have built a great company with extremely high customer and client satisfaction — mthree is putting people in great IT jobs with great companies, and these people are succeeding. We are very pleased to welcome them to the Wiley family.”

In 2020, there will be more than 1.8 million unfilled computer-related job opportunities in the US and EMEA, yet only 100,000 computer science graduates, according to industry statistics.

With Gartner reporting a global IT spend of $3.7 trillion, technology is among the most in-demand disciplines for students, professionals, universities and corporations.

Demand for mthree’s expertise is therefore expected to continue to rise. Its revenue for the calendar year 2019 is expected to be in excess of $50m, with projected annual growth of more than 20%.

CEO of mthree Alex Headley said: “The last five years have seen tremendous growth for mthree. We have been on a journey from a start-up to a global corporation that includes partnerships with the world’s largest banks and disruptive tech businesses.

“Wiley will enable mthree’s strategic growth plans to be realised, helping more graduates navigate the changing world of work and our clients grow their businesses with the right talent.”

Todd Zipper, President of Wiley Education Services said the addition of mthree to Wiley’s portfolio reinforces the company’s commitment to driving outstanding career outcomes by delivering high-quality education content, platforms and services that target high-demand careers and disciplines.

He said: “mthree is a terrific company that extends Wiley’s unmatched portfolio of education services right into the workplace.

“They effectively eliminate the friction that exists in the labour market when students leave higher education and try to enter the workforce and, in doing so, they create a win-win-win for the university, the corporation and, most of all, the student.”

Jefferies LLC acted as MThree’s sole financial advisor on this transaction. Addleshaw Goddard LLP acted as legal advisor to ECI Partners, and Osborne Clarke LLP acted as legal advisor to MThree management.