Systems integration is where the global consultancies and the large European IT groups compete, and it contains some of the biggest IT services deals of the decade. Between 2015 and 2025 we recorded 2,279 acquisitions of systems integrators worldwide, using proprietary counts from the Aventis Advisors deal database of more than 125,000 transactions. This article ranks the most active buyers of integrators, including the busy market for SAP and Salesforce implementation partners. It is part of our ranking of the top strategic acquirers of IT services companies.
If you run a systems integrator, your buyer pool is broader than in most IT services lines: national roll-ups building regional scale, global integrators buying capability and geography, and private equity funds backing platform champions. Deal sizes run larger here than in managed services, so the process and the buyer set look different.
Who’s buying systems integrators: 2015-2025 in numbers
Integration M&A was steady through the decade, front-loaded for some buyers into 2015-2019 and sustained by the platform and capability needs of digital transformation and cloud migration. This line holds the single largest disclosed IT services deal in our data, the roughly $8.5 billion combination of CSC with Hewlett Packard Enterprise’s Enterprise Services unit, announced in 2016. That transaction was a carve-out and merger that created DXC Technology in 2017, not an acquisition made by DXC, which did not exist before then.
The most active buyers of systems integrators at a glance
Deal counts cover announced acquisitions of systems integrators from 2015 to 2025, families consolidated (Sesa includes its VAR Group subsidiary). “Type” marks strategic/operating buyers versus private equity funds. Counts are per service line, so the same corporate group can show a different total in the other articles in this series.
| # | Buyer | Type | 2015-2019 | 2020-2022 | 2023-2025 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Accenture |
Strategic | 15 | 14 | 3 | 32 |
| 2 |  Bechtle |
Strategic | 8 | 1 | 4 | 13 |
| 3 |  Sesa (incl. VAR Group) |
Strategic | 4 | 4 | 4 | 12 |
| 4 | NTT DATA (through NTT DATA Business Solutions) | Strategic | 7 | 2 | 2 | 11 |
| 5 |  Inetum |
Strategic | 6 | 1 | 3 | 10 |
| 6 |  DXC Technology |
Strategic | 9 | 0 | 0 | 9 |
| 7 |  Lutech |
Strategic | 4 | 1 | 4 | 9 |
| 8 |  Capgemini |
Strategic | 4 | 4 | 0 | 8 |
| 9 |  H.I.G. Capital |
PE | 3 | 2 | 3 | 8 |
| 10 |  IBM |
Strategic | 2 | 3 | 1 | 6 |
A note on DXC Technology. DXC was created in 2017 by the merger of CSC with Hewlett Packard Enterprise’s Enterprise Services unit, so its nine deals include those of its predecessor businesses, CSC and HPE Enterprise Services. The roughly $8.5 billion Enterprise Services transaction was the carve-out and merger that formed the company, not an acquisition by DXC. DXC earns its place on the historic count, but it has recorded no integration acquisitions since 2019 and is not a live consolidator today.
SAP and Salesforce implementation partners
A large share of integration M&A is the consolidation of platform partners. Our SAP-partner research puts NTT DATA, Deloitte, and Accenture as the three most active buyers of SAP consultancies, with Capgemini and IBM also regular acquirers; buyers of Salesforce partners include Accenture, Cognizant, and Infosys. If you run an SAP or Salesforce implementation firm, these platform-focused acquirers are your most likely buyers, chasing certified talent and client relationships to accelerate cloud migrations. Many of the same buyers also acquire advisory-led shops, so if your work spans strategy and implementation see our companion ranking of who is buying IT consulting firms.
1) Accenture
Overview: The world’s largest IT services and consulting firm and by far the most active buyer of systems integrators in our data. It acquires integration and platform-implementation specialists worldwide to add capability, certified talent, and client relationships to its global delivery network.
Acquisition pace: 32 integration deals, 15 in 2015-2019, 14 in 2020-2022, and three in 2023-2025.
Typical target: SAP, Oracle, Salesforce, and cloud implementation specialists across Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific.
Select transactions: Agilex Technologies (US, ~$264m, 2015), Camelot Management Consultants (Germany, ~$152m, 2024), and Structure Consulting Group (US, ~$90m, 2015).
2) Bechtle
Overview: A German IT systems house and reseller that has grown across Europe by acquiring integrators and IT solution providers.
Acquisition pace: 13 integration deals, front-loaded into 2015-2019 with a fresh burst in 2023-2025.
Typical target: European integrators and IT solution providers, often country-specific, acquired to enter or deepen a national market.
Select transactions: Inmac WStore (France, ~$246m, 2018), Grupo Solutia (Spain, 2025), and Qolcom (UK, 2024).
3) Sesa (incl. VAR Group)
Overview: Italy’s largest IT value-added distribution and services group; through VAR Group it consolidates Italian integrators at high volume.
Acquisition pace: 12 integration deals, evenly spread at four per sub-period.
Typical target: Italian systems integrators and IT specialists, usually majority stakes with founders retained.
Select transactions: PBU CAD-Systeme (Germany, ~$4m, 2019), Sangalli Tecnologie (Italy, 2023), and Metisoft (Italy, 2024).
4) NTT DATA (through NTT DATA Business Solutions)
Overview: NTT DATA buys SAP practices almost entirely through NTT DATA Business Solutions, its German-headquartered SAP arm, so this is a subsidiary within a much larger listed group rather than an independent buyer. It exists to acquire and integrate SAP implementation partners worldwide. The 11 deals here are integration deals only, and the group’s total in our SAP-partner ranking is higher because that count covers every SAP-focused acquisition, not just the ones classified as systems integration.
Acquisition pace: 11 integration deals, weighted to 2015-2019.
Typical target: SAP consulting and implementation partners across Europe, the Americas, and Asia.
Select transactions: My Supply Chain Group (US, 2021), FH Consultoria (Brazil, 2019), and Goldfish ICT Services (Netherlands, 2017).
5) Inetum
Overview: A French IT services and integration group (formerly Gfi) expanding across Europe and Latin America through sizeable platform deals.
Acquisition pace: 10 integration deals, with the largest disclosed values in this section outside the CSC and HPE Enterprise Services combination.
Typical target: European integrators and IT services firms, including large national platforms.
Select transactions: Informatica El Corte Ingles (Spain, ~$377m, 2019) and RealDolmen (Belgium, ~$202m, 2018).
6) DXC Technology
Overview: DXC was formed in 2017 by the merger of CSC with HPE’s Enterprise Services unit, so the nine deals counted here include those of its two predecessor businesses, CSC and HPE Enterprise Services. It ranks on that historic record. DXC has recorded no integration acquisitions since 2019, so it belongs in the ranking on count but is not a live consolidator today and should not be in your buyer list on the strength of this table alone.
Acquisition pace: 9 integration deals, all in 2015-2019 and none since, but with by far the highest disclosed values in this line.
Typical target: Large-scale integration and outsourcing platforms, when it was buying.
Select transactions: the roughly $8.5bn combination of CSC with HPE Enterprise Services (announced 2016), which created DXC rather than being bought by it.
7) Lutech
Overview: An Italian IT services and systems integration group that has grown by acquiring integrators and technology specialists, chiefly in its home market and more recently in Spain.
Acquisition pace: 9 integration deals, four in 2015-2019, one in 2020-2022, and four in 2023-2025.
Typical target: Italian and Spanish integration and IT services firms that broaden its capability and client base.
Select transactions: DOT Srl (Italy, ~$11m, 2022), Eustema (Italy, 2023), and Sapim (Spain, 2024).
8) Capgemini
Overview: One of the largest global IT consulting and integration groups and a regular acquirer of platform and integration specialists to add capability and geographic reach.
Acquisition pace: 8 integration deals, four in 2015-2019 and four in 2020-2022, with none recorded since.
Typical target: Integrators and implementation partners, including SAP practices, that strengthen its digital, cloud, and enterprise-platform delivery across Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific.
Select transactions: Empired (Australia, ~$178m, 2021), CIBER North American operations (US, ~$50m, 2017), and TCube Solutions (US, ~$25m, 2017).
9) H.I.G. Capital
Overview: H.I.G. Capital is a US mid-market private equity firm and the one financial buyer that ranks among the most active acquirers of systems integrators, backing integration and IT services platforms it can carve out or take private and then build up. It is the most active private equity investor in IT services overall.
Acquisition pace: 8 integration deals, three in 2015-2019, two in 2020-2022, and three in 2023-2025.
Typical target: Integrators and technology-services businesses in the US and Europe it can scale as platform investments.
Select transactions: Mainline Information Systems (US, ~$1.59bn, 2023), Converge Technology Solutions (Canada, ~$935m, 2025), and NCI (US, ~$271m, 2017).
10) IBM
Overview: A global technology and consulting company that acquires integration and platform-implementation firms to expand its hybrid-cloud and consulting capability.
Acquisition pace: 6 integration deals, two in 2015-2019, three in 2020-2022, and one in 2023-2025.
Typical target: SAP, Salesforce, and Microsoft implementation specialists in the US and Europe whose talent and client relationships extend its delivery reach.
Select transactions: Waeg (Belgium, ~$61m, 2021), Neudesic (US, 2022), and Cognitus Consulting (US, 2025).
Active private equity investors in systems integrators
Systems integration is the one line where a fund cracks the main table: H.I.G. Capital, with 8 integration buyouts (including Mainline Information Systems and Converge Technology Solutions). Other repeat sponsors are CVC (4), FSN Capital (4), Arlington Capital (4), Bain Capital (3), and One Equity Partners (3). See our ranking of the top private equity investors in IT services.
What this means if you’re selling a systems integrator
Your realistic buyers span three groups: national roll-ups (Bechtle, Sesa, Inetum) buying to enter or deepen a market, global integrators (Accenture, Capgemini, IBM) buying capability and clients, and private equity (HIG and peers) backing platforms. Capability, certified talent, and a quality client base drive the multiple. If you are an SAP or Salesforce partner, expect interest from the platform-focused acquirers above. Running a process across these groups, and understanding the strategic versus financial buyer trade-off, is what lifts price.
Thinking about selling your systems integration business?
Aventis Advisors advises IT services founders on M&A. We help you identify the realistic buyers, position the business, and run a competitive process. Talk to our team.
Frequently asked questions
Who is the most active buyer of systems integrators?
Accenture, with 32 systems-integration acquisitions between 2015 and 2025 in our database, well ahead of Bechtle (13) and the Sesa/VAR Group family (12). It is the one IT services line where a private equity fund, H.I.G. Capital, ranks in the top 10.
Who buys SAP and Salesforce consultancies?
On our SAP-partner research the three most active buyers of SAP consultancies are NTT DATA, Deloitte, and Accenture, with Capgemini and IBM also regular acquirers; Salesforce partners are bought mainly by Accenture, Cognizant, and Infosys. These buyers want certified talent and client relationships to speed cloud migrations.
What are systems integrators worth?
Deal sizes run larger than in managed services, but multiples depend on capability, utilization, client concentration, and recurring versus project revenue. See our IT services valuation multiples report.
About Aventis Advisors
Aventis Advisors is an M&A advisory firm focused on technology and IT services companies. We advise founders and owners on company sales, growth capital, and strategic transactions, combining sector focus with proprietary deal data such as the database behind this article. To discuss your options, get in touch.
