Accenture: Accenture strengthens its IC design expertise with third acquisition of Cientra

Accenture on Wednesday announced the acquisition of New Jersey-based Indian product solutions company Cientra for an undisclosed sum, its third acquisition in the semiconductor design and engineering services sector. Accenture will absorb about 530 Cientra engineers and specialists in their entirety and transfer them to its Advanced Technology Centers in India, the world’s largest IT services provider said in a statement.

“Our acquisition of Cientra is our latest step to expand our IC design and engineering capabilities and underscores our commitment to helping clients maximize value and transform this industry,” said Karthik Narain, chief technology officer, Accenture.

Founded in 2015, Cientra has offices in Frankfurt, New Jersey, Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Noida, according to the company’s website.

“Joining Accenture presents us with exciting opportunities to expand globally and enhance our capabilities, enabling us to create new paths of growth for both our clients and our people,” said Anil Kempanna, CEO of Cientra.

The acquisition by Accenture follows the addition of Excelmax Technologies, a Bengaluru-based semiconductor design services provider, announced earlier this week. In 2022, it acquired XtremeEDA, a Canadian integrated circuit design services company.

During the purchasing frenzy:
The Ireland-based multinational invested a total of $2.3 billion in 12 acquisitions in the third quarter ended May, bringing its total to 35.

In the current fiscal year, which follows the September/August fiscal year, Accenture has invested $5.2 billion of capital as of May, compared with $2.5 billion in full-year fiscal 2023 ending in August 2023, the company’s chairman and CEO Julie Sweet said in a conference call following the results.

In May alone, Accenture announced five acquisitions, bringing the total to four in April.

Accenture announced its financial results for the March-May period on June 20, during which its CFO KC McClure said, “For full-year fiscal 2024 (ending August), we currently expect our revenue to be in the range of 1.5% to 2.5% growth in local currency terms compared to fiscal 2023, assuming an inorganic contribution close to 3%.

In the growing semiconductor market, many companies are making acquisitions to expand their operations in this industry.

Larsen & Toubro subsidiary L&T Semiconductor Technologies (LTSCT) on Monday agreed to buy 100% stake in Bengaluru-based SiliConch Systems.

Earlier this year, homegrown software services giant Infosys acquired a stake in InSemi, a Bengaluru-based semiconductor design and embedded services provider. Infosys had flagged a $500 billion opportunity in engineering and semiconductor services.