Netcall expands into Europe after acquiring GenAI document firm Parble in €10m deal – UKTN

Customer engagement software business Netcall has marked its expansion into Europe after acquiring Belgian generative AI-powered document processing firm Parble in a €10m deal.

London-listed Netcall said the acquisition provides the company with specialised intelligent business processing technology that can be rapidly integrated into its business platform, Liberty.

Netcall said the takeover would help expand its customer base into Europe as well as giving it a greater presence in the insurance sector, adding that the deal was expected to be immediately earnings enhancing with regard to adjusted earnings per share.

Netcall CEO James Ormondroyd said: “Parble is a valuable addition to the Liberty portfolio, enhancing our digital transformation capabilities and providing two-way cross-selling opportunities. We are delighted to welcome the Parble team and benefit from their expertise, and we look forward to working together to improve our customers’ operational efficiency.”

The total consideration for the deal is up to €8.7m, plus the assumption of €1.1m net debt, for a total cost of €9.8m (£8.3m). That include €4m payable if Parble achieves a revenue growth target from €1.5 million at the time of the acquisition to €3.3m within three years of the deal’s completion.

Brussels-based Parble provides a cloud-native, GenAI-powered document processing solution that automates data extraction and classification of structured, semi-structured and unstructured data to businesses digitise their processes, such as claims handling, and make insight-driven decisions. Parble has processed over 58 million documents to date

Parble reported a 30% increase in revenue to €1.48m in 2023, with a a profit before tax of €0.17m, turning around a loss before tax of €0.21m the previous year.

Netcall shares rose as much as 4% to 91p in the opening minutes of trade in London following today’s announcement.