On 18 December 2023, Ahmedabad-based Dev Information Technology Ltd (DIT), an end-to-end technology solution and services company, announced that it had acquired a 100 per cent stake in Dhyey Consulting Services Private Limited, which specialises in Microsoft Dynamics 365, customer relation management (CRM), artificial intelligence (AI) and power platform. The acquisition is valued at R9 crore, payable in cash and shares.
What does it bring to DIT? For DIT, this acquisition brings under it wings a company with proven track record, with over 300 implementations, especially in critical sectors like retail and manufacturing in India and overseas. Also, Dhyey Consulting Services’ deep industry expertise and status as a premier Microsoft Gold partner will significantly boost DIT’s existing portfolio of enterprise applications around the Microsoft D365 power platform and AI practice. Dhyey Consulting recorded a turnover of R15.94 crore on March 2023.
As it happens, DIT was founded in 1997 by four promoters -- Pranav Pandya, Jaimin Shah, Prerak Shah and Vishal Vasu. It offers technology solutions leveraging cloud, automation and data technologies and serves government and private clients, including the National Informatics Centre, as also the state governments of Gujarat and Rajasthan. The company specialises in providing end-to-end software solutions and services using cloud, automation and data technologies. This acquisition represents a pivotal advancement in DIT’s mission to offer comprehensive and innovative ERP and CRM solutions.
The integration of Dhyey Consulting fortifies DIT’s position as a leading systems integrator of Microsoft Dynamics 365, expanding its abilities to cater to diverse and complex client needs on a global scale. This move is perfectly timed with Forrester’s forecast of Microsoft business applications services scaling to $10.3 billion by 2025, indicating a thriving market with opportunities. The merger will expand DIT’s market in North America, Europe, India and beyond.
“This acquisition is a strategic response to the growing need for agile, cloud-based business solutions,” elaborates Pandya, founder & chairman. “This will ensure that our clients can adapt to new challenges, optimise costs and explore innovative revenue streams”.
Earlier, in June 2023, LT1, a wholly-owned, step-down subsidiary of the US-based IT company Lilikoi Holdings Inc, had offered to take a controlling 51 per cent stake in DIT for R300 crore in an all cash-deal. “This alliance will expand the company’s technology offerings, access Lilikoi’s clientele and facilitate expansion into the US, Canada, Australia and other geographies, while maintaining a solid presence in India,” Pandya adds. “Through this acquisition, Lilikoi’s vision is to become a unique AI-enabled IoT wireless ecosystem provider, delivering mission-critical, actionable intelligence of the targeted assets using its private, secure and exclusive IoT wireless infrastructure. For DIT, this strategic acquisition will directly boost the company’s presence in North American markets and tap into global business opportunities. It will also help the company facilitate growth in digital transformation services via cloud, blockchain and other existing services, while adding IoT- led business to its revenues”.
“In DIT, we find a perfect blend of technical skills with service capabilities to deploy our solutions in North America and other developed geographies,” acknowledges Sanjay Patel, founder-CEO, Lilikoi. “We are excited to share our vision of being a unique AI-enabled IoT wireless ecosystem provider with the promoters of DIT and leverage their ITeS capabilities to provide efficient and expeditious solutions to our target clientele.”
Initially, DIT was founded as a small-scale set-up mainly engaged in business automation software development. But today, DIT works with its clients across the globe to empower their businesses with the right mix of information technology, innovation, and digital transformation. The company has worked across different industries and completed more than 1,800 projects with 600 clients.
In fact, it has emerged as one of the leading IT-enabled services providers with a remarkable track record of consistently delivering workable and robust solutions. DIT also offers two products – Talligence and ByteSIGNER. Talligence is an AI-powered Tally Business Intelligence tool that provides actionable insights in to a business and boosts data-driven decisions. ByteSIGNER is a high-speed PDF document signing product that enables the company to transition to a paperless office environment effortlessly while ensuring full compliance with legal standards.
IPO route
DIT had tapped the capital market with its initial public offering through the SME market route and was listed on NSE Emerge. “One of our most notable achievements was the successful acquisition of a promising blockchain-based start-up, allowing us to expand our expertise and services in the blockchain domain,” Pandya adds, sharing the company’s growth story. “This strategic move has opened new avenues for the company’s growth in the futuristic technology service provider landscape, which has further solidified our presence in the market. Moreover, we will likely receive investments from an entity active in the domain of 5G technology-based IoT solutions in the US, signalling a strong confidence in our business model and growth potential. These investments will infuse us with financial strength and will unlock exciting business opportunities in the global market. As we continue to make inroads into this new territory”.
“We firmly believe that expanding into new-age technologies like AI, business intelligence and IoT will serve as a cornerstone for our growth in the coming years,” Vishal Vasu, CTO, explains. The increasing demand for automation and digitization of business operations presents a vast potential for IoT solutions. We aim to capitalise on this trend by offering innovative, industry-leading IoT products and services to our clients. These aspects are further strengthened by the fact that DIT is clocking more and more futuristic technology-based projects not only from overseas but from the domestic market, too”.
“The trends witnessed last year are seen as more feasible and possible this year, based on the deliberations and discussions with ongoing and probable clientele,” elaborates Prerak Shah, Jt CEO. “The horizon of possibilities is bright for DIT to be recognised as one of the strongest players from India, catering to the needs of the futuristic technology solution provider domain. Further, as we move ahead, we know the challenges the tech industry faces. However, we are confident in our ability to navigate these challenges with our forward-thinking strategies, committed workforce, and unwavering dedication to excellence. Moreover, we will continue to focus on innovation, customer-centricity, and operational efficiency to maintain our competitive edge and remain steadfast in our commitment to improving our profitability and ensuring sustainable growth”.
Banking on Tier II
DIT’s associate entity, DevX focusses on providing managed offices and co-working spaces. It has made strides in the co-working space industry. It now operates in nine cities, with 22 centres, and has more than 720,000 sq ft area under management, with more than 11,000 seats. These managed spaces are plug-and-play, IT-enabled with state-of-the-art infrastructure and provide business acceleration, incubation, and fund of fund facilities for aspiring technology companies across India. With an impressive 80 per cent space utilisation, DevX has demonstrated its ability to cater to the evolving needs of modern businesses.
“Our associate entity, DevX, has made remarkable strides in the co-working space industry,” concedes Jaimin Shah, MD & CEO. “It serves nearly 1 million sq ft of managed space across 11 cities. These managed spaces are plug-and-play, IT-enabled with state-of-the-art infrastructure and provide business acceleration, incubation and fund of fund facilities for aspiring technology companies across India. With an impressive 80 per cent space utilisation, DevX has demonstrated its ability to cater to the evolving needs of modern businesses”. In fact, the majority of the technology companies in the country recognise that Tier II cities have a strong availability of tech personnel. As a result, these companies have opened their satellite development units in almost all centres of DevX, resulting in incredible growth opportunities for DevX in the future.
For the quarter ended December 2023, the company’s net sales stood at R30.72 crore – up 14.07 per cent from R26.93 crore in December 2022. Its net profit was R1.65 crore in December 2023 – down 51.3 per cent from R3.40 crore made in December 2022. In the last three years, the revenue has grown at a CAGR of 23.6 per cent, operating at a CAGR of 13.1 per cent and net profit of 34.4 per cent. The company’s stock migrated to the main board in 2022. It is listed on NSE as well as BSE and trades at R145-150 – 15.19 per cent away from its 52-week high. The company has given 23.43 per cent returns over the last six months and 66.16 per cent over the last 12 months.
LANCELOT JOSEPH
lancelot.joseph@businessindiagroup.com