Founding trio buy out FutureLink

Management buyout nabs FutureLink

Distributor and ASP FutureLink Europe is to increase its focus on voice and application integration, following a management buyout by its founders.

FutureLink Europe was created when KNS Distribution was acquired by US ASP FutureLink in November 1999 for about £27m.

The US parent went into Chapter 11 in July this year and the European operation was put up for sale [CRN, 27 August].

The founders of the company, Yuri Pasea, Raj Mehta and Nigel Hawley, have now become the new management team for the company, which will be relaunched under the brand name Centia. The firm is to focus heavily on voice and application integration.

"Although both the ASP and distribution businesses were growing, we were guilty by association because of the stigma attached to the fact that our parent company was in Chapter 11," said Pasea.

"We decided to re-acquire because it was a good time to buy, with company valuations being very low."

Pasea was managing director of both privately held KNS and public concern FutureLink Europe. He said he was looking forward to less emphasis being placed on shareholders at the new company.

"Any decisions made now will be for the improvement of the firm. When we were a public company we had to make decisions to please shareholders, which weren't always the best for the company itself," he said.

Tom Doddy, managing director of reseller Hartland Systems, has worked closely with the company for 17 years.

"This is good news because the team in charge is very good to work with and the business will now be UK-driven," he said.