Here’s why Publicis has bought a Romanian software engineering firm
Publicis Groupe has begun the new year by acquiring a Romanian software engineering firm, Tremend, for an undisclosed sum.
Publicis Groupe has acquired Tremend, a Romanian tech company
The holding company said its latest acquisition would serve as a global delivery center for Publicis Sapient, the digital transformation company that is at the heart of its efforts to provide a deeper range of marketing services to clients.
The deal won’t just have been motivated by the holding company’s strategic needs. Founded 16 years ago by Ioan Cocan and Marius Hanganu in Bucharest, Tremend Software Consulting has seen its business expand rapidly since the onset of the pandemic.
Increased demand from banking, telecoms and healthcare clients for cloud software solutions meant it increased revenue to €30m ($33m) – 43% against the previous year in 2021.
The firm's products include Telemed, a proprietary AI-enabled telemedicine platform, and TORP, a customer experience (CX) platform which helps companies begin automating their personalization efforts, allowing them to engage more customers.
Nigel Vaz, chief executive of Publicis Sapient, said: “We’re impressed with the Tremend team’s vision, the breadth of its skillset and capabilities around agile engineering and its deep industry expertise. Bringing Tremend into Publicis Sapient is a powerful expansion of our global distributed delivery model.”
Tremend counts 650 software engineers among its ranks, and Vaz said total headcount would increase to 2,500 over the next three years, as Publicis increases its presence in Romania.
Tremend’s clients already include French supermarket chain Carrefour, bank ING and cellphone network Orange.
Arthur Sadoun, chairman and chief executive of Publicis Groupe, said: “In a context of growing demand for digital business transformation, Publicis Groupe is scaling its expertise in Europe to better serve its clients and help them win in commerce. The addition of Tremend will expand Publicis Sapient’s agile engineering capabilities and diversify its geographic footprint. After the innovative joint venture launched with SCB in December in South East Asia, this is a new step in the international expansion of Publicis Sapient.”