“This is a formidable new global competitor that we are all going to have to deal with,” said a U.S.-based SP 500 CEO, who did not want to be identified. “Hats off to Softcat for getting ahead of what is sure to be a new era of global competition as customers look for global scale and support for AI adoption and implementation.”
Softcat, the number one U.K. solution provider on CRN’s top VAR list for the last three years, has acquired U.S.-based GDT in a $1.05 billion “enterprise value” deal that creates a new global channel powerhouse.
The acquisition combines the U.K.-based publicly traded Softcat with $2.85 billion in revenue and 2,800 employees with GDT, No. 56 on the 2026 CRN SP 500, a Dallas-based solution provider with 900 employees and $1.4 billion in annual revenue.
H.I.G. Capital, the majority owner of GDT, said the deal has an enterprise value of $1.05 billion. Enterprise value represents the total value of the business being acquired, including debt and excluding cash.
GDT, which has a significant data center and networking business, will retain its name, leadership team and workforce, operating as a wholly owned Softcat subsidiary.
“This is a formidable new global competitor that we are all going to have to deal with,” said a U.S.-based SP 500 CEO, who did not want to be identified, commenting on the deal. “Hats off to Softcat for getting ahead of what is sure to be a new era of global competition as customers look for global scale and support for AI adoption and implementation. I expect this trend to continue.”
In the new global solution provider era, $1 billion in revenue is minimum table stakes, said the CEO. “It used to be that $300 to $500 million companies could compete for these global deals,” said the CEO. “That is no longer the case. You need to be a $1 billion-plus player.”
According to a Softcat regulatory filing, the acquisition will be funded through a combination of cash on the balance sheet (£100 million), new debt facilities with Softcat’s relationship lenders (£550 million) comprising a £450 million revolving credit facility and £100 million term loan, and proceeds from an equity placing (£350 million), expected to represent less than 10 percent of issued share capital.
In its press release, GDT said the deal creates a “market-leading transatlantic IT solutions platform that can support clients with international requirements while also providing growth opportunities in both organizations’ markets.”
GDT said the acquisition is the “culmination” of Softcat’s “multi-year search for a North American company with the scale, capabilities and cultural alignment to support its international growth strategy.”
The deal comes five years after H.I.G. Capital, a Miami-based provider of debt and equity capital to small and mid-sized companies, acquired an 80 percent stake in the solution provider.
In a press release announcing the deal, H.I.G. said GDT doubled its EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) and increased its mix of recurring gross profit.
“Joining forces with Softcat will benefit every customer, employee and technology partner as well as our respective bottom lines,” said GDT CEO Shawn O’Grady (pictured above) in a prepared statement.
In fact, GDT said customers will gain enhanced global support and deeper technical resources as both sides invest in expanding GDT’s Global Operations Center in Bangalore.
That investment, GDT said, will enable the center to provide expanded engineering expertise, optimized business systems and 24/7 service that is increasingly critical in today’s always-on IT environment.
Softcat Executive Director and CEO Graham Charlton, for his part, said in a prepared statement that customers have repeatedly asked the company to support their technology requirements outside the U.K. and Ireland, particularly in North America.
“GDT meets every benchmark we looked for to meet that request, including meaningful U.S. scale, an established U.S. enterprise customer base, deep data center and networking capabilities, and a customer-first corporate culture that matches our own,” said Charlton. “With GDT, we will be creating a company with the scale, talent and technical depth to capitalize on the massive growth opportunities in today’s technology market.”
Softcat said the transaction is expected to close no later than the end of Q1 calendar year 2027, subject to customary regulatory filings and approvals.
Several U.S.-based SP 500 CEOs said Softcat had approached them in recent years investigating the possibility of a deal.
The critical factor in the final price of the deal would have been the percentage of services and recurring revenue that GDT brought to the table, said the SP 500 CEO, who did not want to be identified. “The higher the services revenue and recurring revenue, the higher the valuation,” he said.
