John Wiley & Sons Inc., a research and education provider based in Hoboken, announced on Monday it has acquired mthree, a New York, New York-based education services provider, from private equity group ECI Partners LLP, for approximately $129 million.
mthree said it focuses on the “IT skills gap by finding, training and placing job-ready technology talent in roles with leading corporations.” The company’s revenue for 2019 is expected to be more than $50 million, with a projected annual growth rate of more than 20%.
“Wiley is committed to bridging the gap between education output and industry need,” Brian Napack, CEO and president of Wiley, said. “The acquisition of mthree advances Wiley’s leadership in powering the high-demand, high-potential careers that are fueling th e global knowledge economy. CEO Alex Headley and his team have built a great company with extremely high customer and client satisfaction — mthree is putting people in great IT jobs with great companies, and these people are succeeding. We are very pleased to welcome them to the Wiley family.”
Under the deal, mthree will be added to Wiley’s Education Services portfolio and mthree shareholders will received the $129 million in cash at the Jan. 1 closing.
“The last five years have seen tremendous growth for mthree. We have been on a journey from a start-up to a global corporation that includes partnerships with the world’s largest banks and disruptive tech businesses,” Alex Headley, founder and CEO, mthree, said. “Wiley will enable mthree’s strategic growth plans to be realized, helping more graduates navigate the changing world of work and our clients grow their businesses with the right talent.”
Jefferies LLC acted as the financial advisor to mthree. Addleshaw Goddard LLP acted as the legal advisor to ECI Partners LLP, and Osborne Clarke LLP acted as legal advisor to mthree management.
“mthree is a terrific company that extends Wiley’s unmatched portfolio of education services right into the workplace. They effectively eliminate the friction that exists in the labor market when students leave higher education and try to enter the workforce and, in doing so, they create a win-win-win for the university, the corporation and, most of all, the student,” Todd Zipper, president of Wiley Education Services, said.
