For the record, I don't work for Plexure or Task, but I do own shares in the company and have done since 2014, accumulating an overweight position in my portfolio. It's true, I am very excited about the future of Plexure & Task.
This acquisition of Task by Plexure imo stacks up in many ways, but in the words of the Independent Advisor's Report by Simmons ...
"In our opinion, after having regard to all relevant factors, the positive aspects of the TASK Merger (including the TASK Allotment) significantly outweigh the negative aspects from the perspective of the Current Shareholders.”
It's hard not to be excited about this:
"The Strategic Rationale for the Task Merger
Plexure currently offers an extensive customer engagement platform. Its key barrier is integration into the customer’s POS or enterprise management systems.
Task provides a state-of-the-art enterprise POS solution that will enable Plexure to offer a fully integrated system, providing an end-to-end enterprise hospitality and retail engagement platform.
Task also offers Plexure access to new industry verticals (such as casinos, restaurant chains, stadiums and food service) and access to a large, diverse, quality client base.
The Board’s rationale for the transaction is set out in detail in section 2 of the Explanatory Memorandum attached to the notice of special meeting (the Explanatory Memorandum) and is summarised below:
• complementary product sets – the combination of operations and customer engagement product capability will create an end-to-end platform that can improve clients’ digital transformations
• diversification of Plexure’s customer base – Task brings a range of global clients that include multi-national restaurant chains, food service businesses and entertainment and stadium venues across Australia and increasingly in North America and Europe. This will diversify Plexure from its heavy reliance on McDonald’s (which accounted for 94% of Plexure’s revenue in the 2021 financial year)
• development capability – Task’s development capability based in Poland and Australia will complement Plexure’s development team based in New Zealand and ensure the combined group achieves its combined software development ambitions more efficiently than Plexure would be able to achieve alone
• scale, growth and synergies – Task brings material additional recurring software revenue to the combined group. The Board believes the combined group will be better positioned to capture the significant opportunities open to either Task or Plexure on a standalone basis. Furthermore, the combined group will be able to share corporate functions such as finance and human resources.
In our view, the strategic rationale for the Task Merger is compelling. The Task Merger is effectively a merger of equals and will be transformational for Plexure. The Company’s operations will broaden from providing a customer engagement solution for a relatively small number of customers (and being heavily reliant on one – McDonald’s) to being an end-to-end cloud engagement and transaction platform
provider for a number of major hospitality and retail enterprises. The transaction will diversify Plexure’s customer base, expand the product portfolio for both companies and should generate cross-selling opportunities."
And while the acquisition drama was unfolding, Task closed three new deals; Sky Stadium, Bakers Delight and Compass Group.
:)