Three fintech transactions, a cybersecurity deal; plus Swiss, British, Japanese and Canadian wins. Marlin & Associates announces a strong start to 2017

NEW YORK, NY--(Marketwired - February 23, 2017) - Marlin & Associates, the leading investment bank providing strategic and financial advisory services to worldwide buyers and sellers of middle-market companies that provide technology, enterprise data and analytics, announced that it has advised on four recent m&a transactions in the first two months of 2017, including three fintech transactions, and a cybersecurity transaction. The activity included a UK seller, a Canadian seller, a Swiss buyer, and Marlin's second recent m&a transaction involving Japanese investors.

"B2B fintech is alive and thriving," said Marlin & Associates founder and managing partner, Ken Marlin.

M&A's most recent success involved advising the TMX Group (TSX: X), the owner of the Toronto Stock Exchange, on its divesture of its trading infrastructure technology business -- which operated under the "Atrium" brand -- to the Intercontinental Exchange. (More on the Atrium Transaction here.)

Other recent Marlin transactions include:

Advising QuoVadis, the Hamilton, Bermuda-based global provider of managed Public Key Infrastructure (mPKI), Certification Authority (CA) and electronic signature services (eID) and a portfolio company of ABRY Partners on its sale of a majority interest to WISeKey, the Swiss cybersecurity and Internet of Things (IoT) company. (More on the QuoVadis Transaction here.)

Advise Technologies, the provider of regulatory reporting software for investment management firms, which Marlin advised on its acquisition by Compliance Solutions Strategies ("CSS"), a governance, risk management and compliance ("GRC") platform backed by CIP Capital. (More on Advise here.)

And…

Advising London-based OpenGamma, a pioneer in open source financial software and a leading provider of derivatives risk analytics, on a strategic investment from the Japan Exchange Group ("JPX"), Accel Partners, NEX (formerly known as ICAP), Euclid Opportunities and ex-SunGard CEO Cristóbal Conde. (More on OpenGamma here.)

Roman Brunner, CEO of QuoVadis, said: "The Marlin & Associates team was a highly valued player in completing our transaction. Their professional expertise and commitment to the process, preparation, positioning, presentation, and leadership got us to the finish line. They're smart, available whenever needed, and bring the work ethic to get the deal done."

Eric Sinclair, President, TMX Datalinx and Group Head of Information Services, said: "Throughout this process, the team at Marlin & Associates provided great financial and strategic advice. They served as a true strategic partner and integral part of the team as they guided the complex cross-border carve-out project. Marlin & Associates' unique industry expertise played a critical role in bringing this project to a successful conclusion for all stakeholders."

Doug Schwenk, Founder and CEO of Advise, said: "…Marlin & Associates brought a deep understanding of the industry and their expertise was critical in helping us navigate through this strategic transaction. We are very excited about Advise's future within this new structure."

Mas Nakachi, Vice Chairman, OpenGamma, said: "Throughout this process, the team at Marlin & Associates …was able to navigate a great outcome for all stakeholders. They worked closely with our board and management team to support a complex process involving many parties across multiple geographies. They were invaluable to the process."

Ken Marlin, founder and managing partner of Marlin & Associates, said: "B2B fintech is thriving in the current market. Values and volumes remain strong. These were four incredibly complex situations involving clients with stake holders and potential partners in multiple countries and many possible outcomes. And we had considerable interest for each. We are always pleased when we are able to help our clients navigate through these situations and end up with a solution that is win-win for all sides. Each win is a testament to our domain expertise, and our international execution capabilities. Strong clients in a strong market always helps too."

About Marlin & Associates

Marlin & Associates is one of the most active investment banks providing strategic and financial counsel to worldwide buyers and sellers of middle-market companies that provide technology, enterprise data and analytics as part of financial technology solutions, business and market intelligence, cybersecurity and other information technology related services. Headquartered in New York City, with offices in San Francisco, Washington, D.C., and Toronto, Marlin & Associates has won numerous awards including the "Middle-Market Investment Bank of the Year," "Boutique Investment Bank of the Year," "Middle-Market Financing Agent of the Year -- Equity," and "TMT Advisory Bank of the Year." More than 20 transactions on which Marlin & Associates has advised have been recognized as "Deal-of-the-Year." The Marlin & Associates team of professionals has advised on more than 200 information-technology transactions in 27 countries. Find more information on Marlin & Associates here.

Some recent clients that Marlin & Associates has advised include:

• TMX Group (TSX: X), the owner of the Toronto Stock Exchange which Marlin advised on its divestiture of its trading infrastructure technology, Atrium, to the Intercontinental Exchange;
• QuoVadis (QV Holdings, Ltd.), the Hamilton, Bermuda-based company and a portfolio company of ABRY Partners which Marlin advised on its acquisition by WISeKey, a leading Swiss cybersecurity and Internet of Things (IoT) company;
• Advise Technologies, a New York-based provider of regulatory reporting solutions to hedge funds and investment managers, which Marlin & Associates advised on its acquisition by Compliance Solutions Strategies ("CSS");
• Open Gamma, the London, UK-based company that Marlin advised on a strategic investment from the Japan Exchange Group ("JPX"), Accel Partners, NEX (formerly known as ICAP), Euclid Opportunities and ex-SunGard CEO Cristóbal Conde;
• M&O Systems, Inc., the New York-based company that provides compensation management and compliance solutions that help broker-dealers and wealth management firms manage broker/advisor compensation, open accounts, support advisors and service clients, which Marlin & Associates advised on its acquisition by Broadridge;
• BillingTree, a leading provider of omni-channel, integrated payments solutions to the healthcare, ARM and financial services industries, which Marlin & Associates advised on a majority recapitalization with Parthenon Capital Partners;
• iTransact, a leading provider of online, mobile and traditional payment processing solutions, which Marlin & Associates advised on its sale to Payroc;
• Xignite of San Mateo, California, which Marlin & Associates advised on a $20.5 million Series C funding round led by Tokyo-based QUICK Corporation, part of the Nikkei Group;
• Alacra, Inc. of New York, NY, information and workflow solutions for financial institutions & professional service firm, which Marlin & Associates advised on its sale to Opus Global, a leading provider of SaaS-based compliance solutions and a portfolio company of GTCR;
• Varden Technologies, a Boston-based provider of client and advisor communication solutions for investment firms, which Marlin & Associates advised on its acquisition by SS&C Technologies;
• Aquiline Capital Partners LLC, a New York-based private equity firm, which Marlin & Associates advised on its investment into Dublin, Ireland-based Fenergo, a leading provider of lifecycle management software solutions for capital markets participants;
• Information Mosaic Ltd of Dublin, Ireland, a leading software provider for post-trade securities processing on its sale to Markit.