It has just been announced that Aareon AG, the parent company of Aareon UK, has bought mobile systems provider 1st Touch for an undisclosed sum. This isn’t entirely unexpected – over the past year or so the two companies have frequently cited the work they have done around easing the integration of their respective housing management and mobile working systems.
It would appear that 1st Touch will remain a separate entity rather than being absorbed into Aareon, with Aareon’s CEO saying that, “1st Touch will continue to provide mobile solutions across multiple back-office and ERP housing systems.”
Unlike many recent acquisitions among the housing IT suppliers which have usually been very UK-centric in terms of their joint business plans, Aareon AG is keen to use the purchase of 1st Touch as a stepping stone to expand its European operations. As one of this month’s letters (page 28) points out, UK housing providers have tended to be rather insular so it will be interesting to see how Aareon and 1st Touch get on in Europe, and whether this will be the catalyst for more housing IT suppliers looking beyond the UK to do business in Europe.
