US fintech firm Broadridge buys Israeli startup ActivePath
The acquisition is a first in Israel for the US digital communication company, which plans to use the local team to expand R&D and investment
Shoshanna Solomon was The Times of Israel's Startups and Business reporter
US fintech firm Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. said Tuesday it had completed the acquisition of Israeli startup ActivePath, the $4 billion Lake Success, New York-based company’s first acquisition in Israel. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
“The idea is to invest and build out the technology they are currently working on but also continue to invest and grow in the Israeli market,” said Rob Krugman, chief digital officer at Broadridge in a phone interview.
Despite consumers’ interest in all things digital, many brands struggle to create a positive digital experience for their customers, who often prefer to stick with traditional print communication methods.
Broadridge helps enterprises transition their interactions with customers to digital forms of communication — bills and bank statements, for example — from the traditional print methods. The US firm serves some 5,000 customers globally and enables some 5 billion communications a year between companies and their clients, Krugman said.
ActivePath has developed software that enables companies, including banks, brokers, healthcare providers and other billers to reach their clients on all kinds of devices and through a variety of channels like email, text messages, social media and chatbots, in a secure manner. Thus, said Krugman, the activities of the Tel Aviv-based company are synergistic with those of Broadridge.
The companies have been in touch for some three years already, said Krugman, who added that he and Avi Weiss, the CEO of ActivePath, “have similar thoughts on where the market is going and how to achieve success,” he said. “We got to a point in which we realized that ActivePath was an asset we’d like to own.”
Broadridge will now integrate the software developed by the Israeli firm into its platforms, but also build up the local team to develop further products for the company. “We were very attracted by the team,” Krugman said. In addition, the US firm will use its new Israel base to “access the Israeli market and talent and tap into the innovative environment,” he said.
“We have synergies in tech and people,” said ActivePath’s Weiss in an interview. The acquisition is a “highly strategic move” on the part of Broadridge, he said. “The goal is to take the current team as a foundation and add additional resources” and build a local hub that will be focused on the customer communication market.
“We want to enter the Israeli market, invest here, expand the team and add products and services” we can offer our customers, Krugman said. “We are not just buying, but investing and growing.”
