New Delhi [India], September 15 (ANI/NewsVoir): Grant Thornton Bharat led the recently concluded sale of Cians Analytics to Equistone-backed Acuity Knowledge Partners. The firm was the exclusive transaction advisor to the shareholders of Cians Analytics.

Founded in 2009, Cians Analytics provides high-quality, cost-effective research and analytical support for global investment banks, private equity funds, corporations, and portfolio companies allowing them to significantly reduce operating costs. Its' diverse pool of talent, including financial researchers, developers, and data scientists allows the in-house teams of Cians' clients to better focus on strategic initiatives and increase output.

Aditya Khanna, Partner, Lead Advisory at Grant Thornton Bharat, who led the transaction said, "With synergistic service/product offerings and market focus, this acquisition significantly expands Acuity Knowledge Partners' client base and significantly bolsters the value proposition the company provides to both customers and employees."

Siddhartha Nigam, National Managing Partner, Growth Advisory at Grant Thornton said, "The transaction strongly validates increasing traction for the outsourcing sector on the back of economic uncertainty and increasing emphasis within organisations of focusing on their core value propositions. With successive deals across the technology / Outsourcing stack in the past 12 months, this further reinforces Grant Thornton's position as the advisor of choice for unlocking value in this sector."

"The combination of both firms not only increases the capabilities to offer our combined client set but also allows our employees and customers to have a truly global engagement team and experience," said Cians Analytics Co-founder and Co-CEO, Anmol Bhandari. "We often saw each other in engagements and in the marketplace, it ultimately made sense to combine offerings, clients and to give the customers and employees the best both firms can offer."

"This is a win-win situation for our most important stakeholders, our clients and our employees," said Cians Analytics Co-founder and Co-CEO, Aman Chowdhury. "Both firms have a history of delivering high-quality services to a discerning and sophisticated client set, spread across the globe. While both firms work with similar types of clients, our services and focus areas are often complementary. This sets the combined firm up as the pre-eminent firm in our industry, going forward."

Grant Thornton Bharat was recently conferred with two global M&A awards: 'M&A Firm of the Year Award (mid-market category)' and 'Cross Border Deal of the Year' at the recent M&A Atlas Awards 2021. As one of India's leading transaction advisors, this recognition has further strengthened the efforts of the firm toward shaping a vibrant India and creating gold standards in consulting and advisory.

Cians Analytics was founded in 2009 by Anmol Bhandari and Aman Chowdhury, to provide high-quality, cost-effective research and analytical support for global investment banks, private equity funds, corporations, and portfolio companies allowing them to do more with their time and significantly reduce operating costs. Cians supports financial clients across the entire transaction spectrum from initial investment screening, business and financial due diligence, and market entry/market sizing to post- closing portfolio company/market update maintenance work. The Cians Analytics workforce - known for its industry-leading employee retention rate - is composed of individuals who yield the highest calibre expertise in investment banking and research, equity research, and general business research and analytics. Cians' value proposition lies in the flexibility of its engagement model, allowing clients to have total control, adding capability and operating capacity while ultimately lowering costs.

Acuity Knowledge Partners is a leading research, analytics, and business intelligence consultant to the financial services sector. The company's network of analysts and industry experts, combined with advanced data and technology, supports over 420 financial institutions and consulting companies worldwide to operate more efficiently, and unlock their human capital, driving revenues higher and transforming operations. It specializes in investment banking, investment research, private equity & consulting and commercial lending. Acuity is headquartered in London and operates from nine locations worldwide. In 2019, the company was established as a separate business from Moody's Corporation through its acquisition by Equistone Partners.

Equistone is an independent investment firm wholly owned and managed by its executives. The company is one of Europe's leading investors in mid-market buyouts with a strong, consistent track record spanning over 40 years, with more than 400 transactions completed in this period. Equistone has a strong focus on the change of ownership deals and aims to invest between EUR25m and EUR200m+ of equity in various businesses. The company has a team of over 40 investment professionals operating across France, Germany, Switzerland, and the UK, investing as a strategic partner alongside management teams. Equistone is currently investing its sixth buyout fund, which held a final closing at its EUR2.8bn hard cap in March 2018, and has recently launched the Equistone Reinvestment Fund, with a mandate to make minority re-investments alongside new sponsors following a portfolio company exit from one of its main buyout funds. Equistone is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.

Grant Thornton Bharat is a member of Grant Thornton International Ltd. The firm is at the forefront of helping reshape the values in our profession. We are helping shape various industry ecosystems through our work across assurance, tax, risk, transactions, technology and consulting, and are going beyond to shape a more vibrant Bharat.

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