Daisy Group Acquisition, Valuation, Funding & Investors

Daisy Group was acquired by Virgin Media O2 in May 2025.

Daisy Group acquisition price

Undisclosed

Acquired by Virgin Media O2 · May 2025

Key investors in Daisy Group

  • Souter Investments
  • Toscafund Asset Management
  • Penta Capital

Daisy Group Overview

About Daisy Group

Daisy Group is a British provider of business communications, connectivity and managed technology services headquartered in Nelson, Lancashire. It supplies voice, mobile, broadband, cloud, contact-centre and related support services to organisations ranging from sole traders to larger businesses. Founded around 2001 by Matthew Riley, Daisy expanded through organic growth and a long programme of acquisitions, including SpiriTel, Damovo UK, Phoenix IT, Alternative Networks and Voice Mobile. Its operations combine recurring telecommunications contracts with implementation, account management and customer support delivered by teams across the United Kingdom.


Founded

2001

HQ

United KingdomNelson

Status

Acquired

Customer focus

B2B

Revenue model

Services

Daisy Group Acquisition

Daisy Group was acquired by Virgin Media O2 for an undisclosed price on 12 May 2025.

Virgin Media O2 announced on 12 May 2025 a merger of its direct B2B operations with Daisy Group, the UK's largest independent specialist communications provider offering cloud-based communications, 5G private networks, IoT connectivity, security, and AI-powered products to businesses. The transaction creates O2 Daisy, a £3 billion enterprise (including debt) with pro forma annual revenues of £1.4 billion and adjusted EBITDA of £150 million, serving hundreds of thousands of SMBs, enterprises, public sector bodies, and partners from SOHO to large organizations. Leadership includes Daisy founder Matthew Riley as Chairman and Virgin Media O2 Business MD Jo Bertram as CEO, with offices in Nelson, Sheffield, Manchester, London, Reading, and Bournemouth. Virgin Media O2 consolidates the entity with a 70/30 ownership split favoring Virgin Media O2 and Daisy Group holding the minority stake. Deal structure involves Virgin Media O2 contributing a £425 million secured intercompany loan and Daisy £835 million in debt, plus additional financing at closing for debt repayment, maintaining Virgin Media O2's 4x-5x leverage target and value-accretive profile with £600 million in projected synergies, over half within three years. The merger leverages Virgin Media O2's fixed/mobile networks and wholesale agreements with Telefónica and Liberty Global for enhanced scale, efficiencies, and product expansion including data/Wi-Fi, workplace tools, cybersecurity, and O2 Motion insights. Originally expected to close in early H2 2025 pending regulatory approvals, O2 Daisy launched by August 2025, retaining existing brands during integration while planning further updates. The combined entity positions as the UK's second-largest SMB solutions provider, boosting B2B competition amid regulatory, security, and compliance-driven market dynamics, with post-merger commitments like Gamma's seven-year wholesale deal transitioning its SME direct customers to O2 Daisy.

Daisy Group acquisition details
AcquirerDateType
  • Virgin Media O2
12 May 2025Strategic M&A

Daisy Group Funding History

Daisy Group has raised 1 funding round.

Daisy Group funding rounds
DateStageInvestorsDeal Summary
May 2015Undisclosed stagePenta Capital (lead); Toscafund Asset Management (lead); Souter InvestmentsSouter Investments invested in Daisy Group as part of a Penta Capital led syndicate that supported the company's take-private and its subsequent expansion. A consortium comprising Daisy's founder and executive chairman Matthew Riley, Toscafund Asset Management and Penta Capital agreed to buy the AIM-quoted business for £494 million, paying 185 pence per share, a premium of about 15% to the last closing price before the approach. Souter's syndicate also funded Daisy's later acquisition of Phoenix, which broadened the product range and customer reach. Daisy supplies business communications and IT infrastructure services to small and medium-sized companies, including fixed and mobile telephony, connectivity, cloud and managed IT services, from its base in Nelson, Lancashire. Souter records the holding with a May 2015 vintage and describes it as growth capital in which it acted as co-investor, and the position has since been realised.

Who has invested in Daisy Group?

3 investors have backed Daisy Group across its funding rounds, including Souter Investments, Toscafund Asset Management and Penta Capital.

Lead investors include Penta Capital and Toscafund Asset Management.


Daisy Group Investors

Investors in Daisy Group by funding rounds participated
InvestorHQRoundsRoleFirst check
Toscafund Asset ManagementUnited KingdomLondon1LeadMay 2015

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Benchmark 350K+ Funding Rounds and Disclosed VC Valuation Multiples

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Acquisitions by Daisy Group

Daisy Group has acquired 7 companies to date.

Last acquisition by Daisy Group was on April 12th 2024. Daisy Group acquired 4Com for $273M.


Latest Acquisitions by Daisy Group

4Com
DV02
Voice Mobile
Phoenix IT Group
Description
4Com is a Bournemouth-headquartered telecommunications provider founded in 1999 serving UK small and medium-sized businesses with hosted VoIP systems like the HiHi platform featuring video calling, mobile integration, and call reporting. Additional services encompass business broadband via fibre and leased lines, mobile contracts, call analytics, installation, training, and support across sectors.
DV02 was a Portsmouth-based reseller of voice, mobile, data and video communications products to organisations in the private and public sectors. The company had worked as a Daisy Group wholesale partner since 2004 and employed 12 people when it was acquired. Its sales and operations teams were retained after the transaction. DV02's customer relationships and communications expertise supported Daisy's effort to expand its smaller-business mobile base and cross-sell a broader set of connectivity services. The reseller also brought skills relating to Mitel communications systems into the group. Daisy planned to preserve the customer-facing team while combining DV02's product knowledge with its national network, billing and support infrastructure.
Voice Mobile was a British business mobile communications reseller and a long-standing distribution partner of Daisy Group. The company supplied mobile services and related support to business customers through a workforce of 47 employees at the time of acquisition. Its customer book and staff were retained and integrated into Daisy's operations. The purchase formed part of Daisy's 2018 effort to expand its base of smaller mobile customers through acquisitions of established channel partners. Voice Mobile had a commercial relationship with EE and managed mobile accounts for new and existing business customers. Following the sale, its staff joined Daisy Distribution and supported a newly created EE centre of excellence for internal teams and channel partners.
Phoenix IT Group was a UK IT services company supplying managed IT services, business continuity and disaster recovery, and partner services to mid-market corporates and public sector bodies. Headquartered in Northampton, it operated data centres and recovery sites across the UK and was listed on the London Stock Exchange until Daisy Group acquired it in 2015. Revenue came from multi-year managed service and support contracts.
HQ CountryUnited KingdomUnited KingdomUnited KingdomUnited Kingdom
HQ City
-
Portsmouth
Nelson
Northampton
Deal Date12 Apr 202422 Jun 201819 Jun 201827 May 2015
Valuation$273Mundisclosedundisclosed$207M
EV/Revenue
EV/EBITDA

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Daisy Group Competitors

Daisy Group competitors include listed companies like GFT Technologies, transcosmos, SNP Group and AXISCADES Technologies, and private ones like TJM Labs and BlueVoyant.

Public and private companies comparable to Daisy Group
CompanyHQStatusRevenueEBITDAValuationRevenue Multiple
GFT TechnologiesGermanyGermanyPublicly listed$996M$78M$796M0.9x
transcosmosJapanJapanPublicly listed$2.5B$152M$800M0.2x
SNP GroupGermanyGermanyPublicly listed$333M$64M$795M-
AXISCADES TechnologiesIndiaIndiaPublicly listed$123M$19M$809M6.3x
TJM LabsUnited StatesWilmington, DEPrivate--$750M-
BlueVoyantUnited StatesNew York City, NYPrivate--$1B-

Daisy Group Public Comps

Daisy Group is no longer listed, but its public comps include GFT Technologies, transcosmos, SNP Group, AXISCADES Technologies, Beyondsoft, Tata Teleservices, Toukei Computer, Techmatrix, Datagroup and Quest Holdings.

Last FYEV/RevenueEV/EBITDA
RevenueEBITDALast FYLTM2027ELast FYLTM2027E
GFT Technologies$996M$78M0.9x0.9x11.6x9.8x
transcosmos$2.5B$152M0.2x0.2x3.2x-
SNP Group$333M$64M2.3x-12.2x-
AXISCADES Technologies$123M$19M6.9x6.3x43.7x36.6x
Beyondsoft$1B$33M0.6x0.6x17.6x-
Tata Teleservices$122M$66M23.9x-44.2x-
Toukei Computer$132M$52M5.6x5.6x14.3x-
Techmatrix$453M$49M1.5x1.3x13.4x-

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Common questions about Daisy Group

When was Daisy Group founded?Daisy Group was founded in 2001.
Where is Daisy Group headquartered?Daisy Group is headquartered in Nelson, United Kingdom.
Is Daisy Group publicly listed?No, Daisy Group was acquired by Virgin Media O2 in May 2025.
Who acquired Daisy Group?Daisy Group was acquired by Virgin Media O2 in May 2025.
What was Daisy Group's last funding round?Daisy Group's last funding round was a undisclosed-stage round in May 2015, led by Penta Capital and Toscafund Asset Management.
Who are Daisy Group's investors?Daisy Group's investors include Toscafund Asset Management, Penta Capital and Souter Investments.
Which companies are comparable to Daisy Group?Companies comparable to Daisy Group include GFT Technologies, transcosmos, SNP Group, AXISCADES Technologies, TJM Labs and BlueVoyant.
How many companies has Daisy Group acquired?Daisy Group has acquired 7 companies, including 4Com, DV02, Voice Mobile, Phoenix IT Group and Damovo UK.
What was the largest acquisition by Daisy Group?The $273M acquisition of 4Com in April 2024 is the largest acquisition Daisy Group has made to date.

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