Acquisition holds immediate benefit for customers with complex supply chains and footprints across Europe; furthers Sovos’ long-term global tax engine strategy
BOSTON – December 6, 2021 – Global tax software provider Sovos today announced it has acquired Germany-based TLI Consulting GmBH. The move significantly advances Sovos’ value-added tax (VAT) determination capabilities, with immediate benefits for businesses running SAP. VAT determination is one of three pillars of modern tax compliance, and often the first that multinational companies tackle before addressing digital reporting and complex continuous tax controls (CTCs), like e-invoicing. Sovos will leverage TLI Consulting’s software, consulting services and team to help customers Solve Tax for Good® with complete, continuous and connected solutions for every facet of the digital transformation of compliance.
Sovos is on a years’ long journey to build end-to-end offerings that help businesses infuse trust in every transaction. That journey has included the acquisition and development of global CTC, VAT reporting and SAF-T solutions, and a Sovos Connect Once API for a seamless customer experience across systems that need to comply with a wave of real-time and e-audit VAT mandates. TLI Consulting, Sovos’ ninth acquisition in the past 12 months, continues that journey with enhanced VAT determination for businesses with complex supply chains covering a broad jurisdictional landscape across Europe and beyond.
“Sovos has built the most complete suite of technology and services for frictionless compliance in digitizing economies, with advanced solutions for CTC, SAF-T, VAT reporting and other global requirements,” said Andy Hovancik, CEO, Sovos. “The acquisition of TLI Consulting continues that leadership with heightened capabilities for VAT determination, which is often the first piece of an increasingly complex puzzle companies must solve.”
TLI Consulting has served businesses whose transaction and tax determination needs are too complex or costly to configure and maintain via native SAP and in-house tax experts. The company’s software solution extends native SAP VAT determination functionality, and its consultants have the integration and implementation expertise to ensure that SAP ECC or SAP S/4 HANA enterprise resource planning systems can seamlessly determine the right VAT decisions and tax codes for any outbound or inbound transaction.
“Today’s announcement represents a key building block toward a Sovos tax determination portfolio that now helps customers meet modern indirect tax compliance challenges globally, including in Europe, the United States, Brazil and elsewhere,” said Steve Sprague, general manager, global value-added tax, Sovos. “Together, we’re creating the technology solutions that speed simpler tax determination for every transaction, in every jurisdiction, for every tax regime.”
Sovos’ acquisition of TLI Consulting has immediate potential for positive impact on customers in Germany and throughout Europe. In addition to the SAP software extensions upon which it has built its business, TLI Consulting’s expertise and experience will contribute to Sovos’ global tax engine strategy, which is to ensure any customer system can benefit from indirect tax determination, CTC and SAF-T support through a single integration.
“As we join Sovos, the TLI Consulting team gains the opportunity to help create the one-stop VAT solutions companies crave, while expanding our reach as part of a global technology leader. We look forward to this next phase and the positive impact it will have on our customers and future customers,” said Martin Grote, Sovos vice president of European VAT determination and former TLI Consulting director.
John Gledhill, vice president of corporate development for Sovos, said, “As a global organization with more than 2,300 employees, Sovos will scale TLI Consulting’s software and services business in support of the largest multinational companies with complex business transactions in Europe. With this acquisition, Sovos also establishes operations in Germany and now has employees in 14 countries.”
The terms of the deal were not disclosed. Sovos is owned by Hg, the London-based specialist private equity investor focused on software and service businesses, and TA Associates. EY served as financial advisor to Sovos, and Burness Paull and Luther provided legal counsel. Rödl & Partner advised TLI Consulting.
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About Sovos
Sovos was built to solve the complexities of the digital transformation of tax, with complete, connected offerings for tax determination, continuous transaction controls, tax reporting and more. Sovos customers include half the Fortune 500, as well as businesses of every size operating in more than 70 countries. The company’s SaaS products and proprietary Sovos S1 Platform integrate with a wide variety of business applications and government compliance processes. Sovos has employees throughout the Americas and Europe, and is owned by Hg and TA Associates. For more information visit www.sovos.com and follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.
About TLI Consulting
TLI Consulting offers VAT determination software and associated consulting to support clients in entering VAT processes into their SAP (and other ERP) systems through developing and implementing customized, practical and compliant solutions for accounts receivable and accounts payable processes. Further, TLI Consulting offers SAP solutions for VAT ID validations and VAT reconciliations and analysis.
