Azets acquires Baker Tilly Ireland

International audit, accounting, outsourcing, compliance and advisory group Azets has entered the Irish market with the acquisition of Baker Tilly Ireland, which has rebranded as Azets Ireland.

McCann FitzGerald LLP advised Azets on the transaction while ByrneWallace advised Baker Tilly.

Azets specialises in supporting SME businesses and operates across the Nordics and UK.

Azets Ireland is one of the country’s fastest growing professional services firms, providing a range of services, including audit and advisory, corporate finance, tax, restructuring, corporate governance and fund management, with a focus on mid-market, entrepreneurial, owner-managed, and family-owned businesses.

The McCann FitzGerald team was led by partner Gary McSharry and included Rachel O’Neill, Ciaran Sweeney, Joshua Kieran-Glennon, Alan Heuston, Caitríona Callanan, David Lydon, Ciara O’Herlihy, Sarah McCann, Darragh Murphy and Clare Gillett.

The ByrneWallace team was led by managing partner Feargal Brennan with Gillian O’Shaughnessy, Laura Sheehan, Colin Bolger, Catherine Cusack and Ciara Ruane.

Irish AI company Aylien acquired by Quantexa

Aylien, a Dublin-based leader in natural language processing and advanced AI, has been acquired by London’s Quantexa, a software firm specialising in decision intelligence solutions.

Philip Lee LLP advised Aylien on the sale while Simmons & Simmons advised buyers Quantexa.

Quantexa is a global data and analytics software company pioneering contextual decision intelligence that empowers organisations to make trusted operational decisions by making data meaningful.

The acquisition is Quantexa’s first since the company raised $153 million in late 2021 from Warburg Pincus and a group of blue-chip investors.

The Philip Lee team comprised corporate partner Eoghan Doyle, senior associate Hugo Grattirola and associate Patrick Egan.

The cross-border Simmons team was led by corporate partner David Brangam with assistance from Christine Quigley, Geoff Curran and Martin Phelan in Dublin and Angus McLean and Tom Wales in London.

Brightwater Group acquires Raretec Recruitment

Specialist recruitment business Brightwater Group has acquired Raretec Recruitment, a provider of actuarial recruitment services in Ireland.

RDJ LLP advised Brightwater on the acquisition.

With offices in Dublin and Cork, Brightwater has experienced strong growth in recent years and is now well placed to expand its major presence in the recruitment market in Ireland.

Raretec specialises in the sourcing, recruiting and placing of actuaries, risk and data analytics professionals for financial services organisations, consultancy and regulatory bodies in Dublin and across Ireland.

The RDJ transaction team was led by Bryan McCarthy and included corporate and commercial solicitor April Byrne and employment senior associate Sinead Morgan.

McCafferty’s acquires Dublin’s The Barge pub

McCafferty’s Bars & Hospitality Group has acquired The Barge on Charlemont Street, Dublin 2 for a reported sum of nearly €4 million.

Fieldfisher advised McCafferty’s in relation to the acquisition.

The pub was previously owned by businessman and ex-billionaire Seán Quinn and was purchased by McCafferty’s out of liquidation.

The multi-disciplinary team who acted on the transaction was led by real estate partner Patrick Smyth and included employment partner Barry Walsh, employment associate Maeve Griffin, real estate senior associate Neil Dineen, corporate senior associate Aoife Garrett and insolvency and restructuring associate Ciara Gilroy.