THE New York activist investor Irenic Capital Management is close to taking a controlling interest in Newry-based FD Technologies, just over a year after first acquiring a stake in the tech business.
Co-founded by Adam Katz and Andy Dodge in 2021, Irenic initially took 5.8% of the London-listed software company’s shares in January 2024.
Since then, the New York investor has steadily built up its holding, last month extending its interest from 21% to 27.1%.
In a regulatory update on Wednesday, FD Technologies announced that Irenic had again increased its stake from 27.12% to 29.21%.
Under the UK’s Takeover Code, any acquisition taking a party’s shareholding to 30% or more of a public company can trigger an obligation to make a mandatory takeover offer for all the shares it does not own.
It’s thought Irenic Capital Management has been an influential factor in the recent restructuring of FD Technologies that led to the group being split into three separate units and the eventual sale of the greater part of the business.
US software giant EPAM Systems completed a £230m deal to buy the group’s consulting arm First Derivative in early December.
Around 1,800 staff have transferred to the Pennsylvania-based operation as a result.
In the wake of the deal, FD Technologies proposed returning up to £120m to shareholders by way of a ‘tender offer’, paying £19.50 per share to those who wished to participate.
Among those to take up the offer was Juliana Conlon, the widow of the company’s late founder Brian Conlon.
According to a regulatory listing published on January 24, she exchanged 41% of the shares she held in FD Technologies.
It’s thought the deal was worth around £30m for Ms Conlon, leaving her with a 7.9% share overall of FD Technologies.
At the time of Brian Conlon’s death in July 2019, the family had owned 23.4% of the company.
Irenic Capital Management have remained tight-lipped over their plans for FD Technologies, but the New York operator has earned a reputation as an activist investor.
“Change” and collaborative working with “firm leadership” are promoted by its website as its core philosophies.
As a shareholder in Wagamama owner The Restaurant Group, Irenic Capital pushed for the divestment of its pubs and pressured chairman Ken Hanna to stand down.
Irenic also took a position in gas producer Capricorn Energy in 2022, and publicly opposed a proposed merger with Israeli firm NewMed Energy.
The investor is also building up its interest in Texas-based engineering giant KBR, while pushing for it to be split into two.
FD Technologies' share price has steadily increased over the past year, with its market cap standing at around £430m on Wednesday evening.
That values Irenic Capital Management’s holding in the company at around £125m.
