RSM UK advises NEC Software Solutions on carve-out deal

RSM UK has advised NEC Software Solutions UK Limited on its divestiture of public safety and control room software business, Eagle NewCo Limited, to Codan Radio Communications Pty Limited.

Headquartered in Japan, NEC Corporation is a multinational IT, software and electronics company with c.£17bn global revenue. 

Eagle, a carve-out from NEC’s UK operations, is a leading provider of mission critical control room communication and workforce management solutions. It supplies over 100 emergency services and transport customers across the United Kingdom, Europe and the Middle East. Eagle’s solutions are currently used by more than two-thirds of police forces in the UK, as well as by major transportation hubs and airports.

Codan is a global leader in software solutions, with operations across Australia, North America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Latin America. The purchase of NEC’s assets is expected to complement Codan’s core public safety market and its recent acquisition of Zetron Inc, a US-based control room software provider.

A multi-disciplinary team from RSM advised NEC on its carve-out of the Eagle assets. The deal was led by RSM’s M&A team, with support from its due diligence team who carried out a complex vendor due diligence exercise. RSM’s tax team also advised on tax structuring.    

Clodagh Tunney, corporate finance partner at RSM UK, said: ‘We are delighted to have supported NEC on this transaction, which has brought together two closely aligned businesses, each with a strong reputation in the public safety and emergency response sector. It was a pleasure to work with NEC throughout the process and we are looking forward to seeing Eagle continue to fly under its new ownership.’ 

Steve Ainsworth, Executive Director for Public Safety at NEC, said ‘We are grateful to RSM for their unwavering support throughout this entire process. Their global network and knowledge of the software market has allowed us to find a great home for our colleagues at Eagle. We couldn’t have achieved such a great result without them.’   

The RSM deal team was led by corporate finance partner Clodagh Tunney, with support from Lucy Roberts, Jane Dunn, Bradley Logan and Austin Halewood. Vendor due diligence was provided by Lee Castledine and Jacob Moore, as well as transaction support from RSM’s tax team (Andrew Gordon, Nigel Gleaden and Geraint Powell). 

DACB Beachcroft provided legal advice to NEC, led by partner Jonathan White.