New Delhi - India's HOV Services has acquired Lason, a US-based business-process outsourcing firm, for 148 million dollars, media reports said Tuesday.
HOVS is a leading provider in the field, also known as BPO, which involves companies giving business tasks that they would normally do themselves - such as payroll, billing or customer-related services - to a third party. BPO provides such services in the finance and accounting sectors.
It made the acquisition of Lason through its US subsidiary, the Economic Times reported. HOVS and the private equity firms Apollo Management and Merill Lynch have invested 63 million dollars while
the remaining amount has been raised as debt, HOVS director Sunil Rajadhyaksha told the daily.
Other local media outlets reported that Lason and HOVS will have combined annual revenues in excess of 200 million dollars.
With the acquisition, HOVS and its global workforce of more than 11,000 employees would serve more than 4,000 customers in the United States.
Lason also has operations in China with 1,200 staff and Mexico, where it employs 250 people.
India is among the world leaders in BPO services, and the revenue from the booming sector is projected to reach 8 billion dollars by the end of this year, according to India's National Association of Software and Services Companies.
Firms from neighbouring South Asian countries like Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Nepal and Bangladesh are also forging alliances with leading Indian BPO providers to boost their own industries.
