Lightspeed POS Inc, a leading global point of sale platform for over 51,000 customer locations worldwide, has acquired all the shares in Australia-based Kounta Holdings for approximately $84 million (which includes scrip and contingent consideration). Lightspeed is listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange and has a market capitalisation of approximately C$2.8 billion.
Founded in 2012, Kounta is a rapidly growing, SAAS cloud-based POS solutions provider to SMEs in the hospitality industry. Kounta serves more than 7,000 customer locations in Australia and New Zealand. This transaction will bolster Lightspeed’s footprint in Australia and New Zealand, assist Lightspeed in providing even better customer experiences, and accelerate its mission of becoming the leading global POS platform for SMEs.
Hamilton Locke advised the founder vendor, Nick Cloete, who has led Kounta since inception.
The Hamilton Locke team was led by partner Hal Lloyd and assisted by senior associate Joshua Bell and lawyer Jeremy Chow. The founder was also advised by Allen Partners and Deloitte. Lightspeed was advised by King & Wood Mallesons and MYOB was advised by Gilbert & Tobin.
“We are proud to have advised Nick Cloete on this deal. Nick and his team have built a rapidly growing POS business in the hospitality industry since Kounta was founded in 2012. Kounta’s growth story, which saw MYOB invest in it in 2014 and now Lightspeed acquire it for an enterprise value of approximately $84 million, is a credit to Nick’s vision and drive to provide a point of sale solution that enables business to better run, connect and grow their businesses. We are excited to see what the future holds as Kounta begins its next chapter as part of the Lightspeed family”, said partner Hal Lloyd.
About Hamilton Locke
Hamilton Locke is a multi-award winning full service corporate and commercial law firm covering M&A, property, banking, restructuring, fund establishment and litigation. With talent from some of the top law firms globally, we believe in the relentless pursuit of success for our clients and that is why we have grown an organisation of energised people, propelled by class leading technology, who are freed up from bureaucracy and administration to really focus on doing what they do best – solving complex client problems.
