SINGAPORE, 09 SEPTEMBER 2021 – NCS has reached agreements to acquire three companies – ClayOPS, Velocity Business Solutions, and Riley – with capabilities in data analytics and cloud that will support NCS’ regional expansion strategy in Asia Pacific. The move is in line with Singtel’s strategic reset announced in May to turn NCS into a B2B services champion in Asia and develop new engines of growth.   

This trio of acquisitions will help boost the capabilities of NCS’ digital services organisation, NCS NEXT, in its key markets of Singapore, Greater China and Australia, creating a unique combination of digital, data analytics, and cloud services that will help government and enterprise clients become digital at their core. The three companies’ established network of clients, partners, and local expertise, will also advance NCS’ reach into new segments and drive further growth in the digital and cloud services space.

Mr Ng Kuo Pin, CEO of NCS, said, “These acquisitions are targeted and timely as they will accelerate our expansion into Asia Pacific, particularly in the high-growth markets of Singapore, Greater China and Australia. These markets are seeing digital adoption in both the public and private sectors ratchet up very quickly and we are investing in critical solutions and digital expertise to build out our suite of integrated services.”

Ng added, “NCS is committed to providing greater value for our clients and the industry through strategic partnerships and building an innovation ecosystem for technology players of different sizes and niche capabilities, to augment our service portfolio and give our clients access to innovation across the region.”

ClayOPS, a Singapore-based data analytics and consulting services firm, specialises in helping organisations improve performance through data. Established in 2010, it works with large enterprises to break down data silos across disparate systems and transform them into insights effectively and efficiently for better informed decisions. ClayOPS’ extensive analytics and technical expertise backed by proven processing methodology will deepen NCS NEXT’s digital capabilities in data analytics solutions. It will also add an immediately accessible portfolio of large local and multinational clients across industries, including property, healthcare, and transportation.

Velocity Business Solutions, a Hong Kong-based data analytics firm established in 2009, provides a full suite of data analytics consulting and implementation services including design, development, support, and enablement. With its strong experience and clientele in the financial services, transportation, and logistics industries, Velocity Business Solutions will support NCS’ Greater China growth strategy to reach these target industry sectors.

Riley, a leading Australian cloud-based solutions consultancy, offers a comprehensive portfolio of services in cloud-native transformation, data supply chain, and cloud operations. Established in 2010, it focuses on helping mid-market and enterprise clients transform their business through cloud computing. Riley will accelerate NCS’ growth in Australia through its established relationships with partners, talent expansion, and access to new go-to-market channels.

Matthew Choo, Co-Founder and Director of ClayOPS, said, “We are excited to partner with NCS as the vast array of its capabilities and organisational reach will leapfrog ClayOPS onto its next wave of growth. ClayOPS places great emphasis on a people-centric approach where we specialise in blending data and technology into people and business processes to ensure it becomes part of the organisational DNA. With our partnership, we are eager to bring our experience and developed capabilities in process methodology to the table and provide holistic solutions to NCS clients in their data-driven transformation journeys.”

Ian Whitehouse, Founder and Managing Director of Velocity Business Solutions, said, “We have achieved profitable, organic growth and expansion in the last 11 years, and our partnership with NCS is the natural next step for the business. Velocity Business Solutions provides significant value on every project, through our data analytics offerings, commitment to customer success, business agility and consistent delivery. The partnership will enable us to widen our data analytics solutions and services, expand our customer base and extend our geographic footprint into the Greater Bay Area of South China. We are looking forward to working together with NCS towards becoming the dominant player in data analytics across Asia Pacific.”

Tom Bernadou, Founder and Managing Director of Riley, said, “The cloud services market was in its infancy when we first founded the business in 2010. Over the past 11 years, we have witnessed first-hand how the cloud can transform entire businesses, industries, and community services. We are excited to join the team at NCS, and along with their scale and experience throughout the region, continue our mission of delivering to the market technical innovation, real business, and community value, while accelerating the digital transformation agendas of private and public organisations across Australia and the region.”

ClayOPS, Velocity Business Solutions, and Riley will continue to run independently under NCS with its respective senior leadership continuing in their current roles within the companies. They will further expand their product and service offerings, and in close collaboration with NCS NEXT, drive synergies in its digital offerings to market.

The completion of the acquisitions is subject to fulfilment of closing conditions.