Visma increases acquisition focus; appoints M&A Manager for Finnish market

Visma, the largest SaaS company in Northern Europe, will continue to pursue an active acquisition strategy in addition to strong organic growth and has strengthened its global acquisition team with a local Finnish M&A Manager.

2020 was a record year for Visma globally in terms of acquisitions, with over 30 companies joining the Visma family. In addition to the Nordic countries, expansion continued in the Benelux region, with the acquisition of several financial management Software as a Service (SaaS) companies.

Visma will continue to implement an active acquisition strategy also this year and has strengthened its global Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A) team by recruiting a M&A manager in Finland. Anssi Puolakka, M.Sc., has been appointed to the position in December. Anssi has previously held M&A positions at KONE and Total Specific Solutions (TSS). At TSS, Puolakka was responsible for software acquisitions and investments in Finland, Denmark and the Baltic countries.

“My mission is to look for both fast-growing challenger companies and B2B SaaS product companies that have already achieved a strong market position to support and expand the already existing Visma portfolio. Particularly interesting additions to our offering are, for example, software solutions that increase the use of artificial intelligence and the degree of automation. We are also constantly analysing expansion opportunities in, for example, industry-specific software. A good example is Visma Tampuuri, around which we aim to build a software ecosystem that serves the construction and real estate industries extensively,” says Puolakka.

“Visma provides a good home for growing SaaS companies and an opportunity to accelerate growth. The acquired company will be allowed to continue operating independently, but as part of a larger business entity with extensive experience and expertise in the various stages of growth. I would like to welcome Anssi to Visma’s M&A team to strengthen the mapping and execution of acquisitions in the strategically important Finnish market,” says Sindre Talleraas Holen, Visma's Head of M&A.

"Visma has several centers of expertise that for example help Visma companies improve user experience, information security, software development methods, pricing and business models and HR processes. In addition, the centers of expertise have nearly 1,000 software developers from which the Visma companies can flexibly obtain additional product development capacity if necessary. Visma has a strong presence in Northern Europe, which offers an efficient channel to new markets with lower costs and risks," says Juha Mäntylä, Member of the Board of Visma Finland Holding Oy.

“I look forward to interesting discussions with Finnish entrepreneurs. I encourage interested entrepreneurs to contact us and I am happy to tell more about Visma and how Visma could help support the company's future growth,” adds Puolakka.

More information:
Anssi Puolakka, M&A Manager, Visma, tel. +358504905135, LinkedIn
Sindre Talleraas Holen, Head of M&A, Visma, tel. +4793059469