The Canadian group EXFO (400 employees, CAN$ +60 M turnover), a world leader in monitoring fibre optic networks, has purchased 97.44% of Astellia (Saint Jacques de la Lande, 400 employees, €38.6 M turnover 2017) following a first acquisition of 33.1% of the capital of the Bretagne company in September 2017. This CAN$ 40.5 M operation is boosting EXFO’s presence in the mobile network market, as Astellia offers monitoring solutions for networks and wireless networks. In addition, as the Astellia minority shareholders no longer hold 5% of its capital or voting rights, EXFO should launch mandatory withdrawal of the last shareholders to create one of its divisions. EXFO is also benefiting from the presence of Astellia in Europe, Middle-East and Africa with this operation.

EXFO also acquired Yenista Optics in 2017 (Lannion, thirty employees, €5.2 M turnover 2016), a leading manufacturing of fibre optic measuring and testing instruments. Now called Exfo Optics, the Bretagne company holds some twenty patents for measuring techniques, optical filters and external cavity lasers. Yenista Optics enjoys a portfolio for the high-end laboratory and manufacturing markets, which complements the Exfo optical tests, namely portable test equipment for the market of suppliers of network services.

 

Source : API Newsletter – 02/03/2018