ALSO becomes Europe’s largest Technology Provider

After a record-fast completion following merger clearance, the financials of ALSO and Westcoast will be consolidated starting 1 March 2025, achieving over €15 billion in revenue.

The purchase price corresponds to an EBITDA multiple of approx. 6, with a quarter of the total amount paid in ALSO shares. These shares were acquired at an average price of CHF 172 during the 2022-2023 share buyback program, and are now trading at CHF 276. The cash portion of the purchase price was paid entirely from existing reserves, without any external financing. After this transaction and the announced buyback of shares, ALSO will continue to maintain further cash reserves and already established external facilities for future growth.

With an EBITDA of €73 million in 2024, the business is accretive for ALSO. The company is the market leader in the region, holding a dominant position in the British and Irish distribution markets with operations in England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland and France. Additional value will be created through:

• Customer base: increase breadth in the UK via ALSO's webshop
• Cloud: enhance amount of unique users and monetization in the UK
• Digital Platforms: develop IoT, cybersecurity, virtualization and AI
• France: integrate operations, adding 40% to ALSO local sales
• Operational excellence: harmonize best-in-class systems and processes

The combination of these winning operations is being coordinated by a well-balanced steering committee, including senior managers and experienced international project teams. The integration will take place over several years, with individual topics being prioritized based on profitability potential.

In addition to being a major shareholder in ALSO, Joe Hemani will remain active in the industry and continue to hold interests in various companies, for example a reseller business, a gaming company, and a value add distributor in telecommunications. The collaboration with these companies will be further intensified to unlock additional potential.