Global research and analytics giant Acuity Knowledge Partners to double Lankan operations

Acuity Knowledge Partners CEO Robert King

Acuity Knowledge Partners Sri Lanka MD and Country Head Chanakya Dissanayake

Global leader in research, analytics and technology solutions to financial services sector Acuity Knowledge Partners (Acuity) is to double its work force in Sri Lanka to 1,000 in three years as talent and operations in the country have been exceptional.

Founded in Sri Lanka in 2003 as Amba Research but with change of ownership twice since, Acuity has expanded globally with offices in the UK, US, India, Costa Rica, and China and serving 500 global institutional customers.

In 2019 when the European mid-market private equity investor Equistone Partners acquired the company from Moody’s, it had 250 staff in Sri Lanka and since has grown the specialist talent pool to 500. Within Acuity global operations with a team of over 5,000, Sri Lanka is identified as one of the most profitable and the fastest growing delivery centres.

The Lankan team has shown prowess in investment research, investment banking, specialised solutions, commercial lending, private equity and consulting, fund marketing solutions and compliance support.

Acuity Knowledge Partners CEO Robert King was in Colombo for a day’s visit to brief the Lankan team about its recent acquisitions and progress and told the Daily FT that despite recent challenges, it remains committed to Sri Lanka and growing the operations.

“Overall, we are aiming at doubling our global business with double digit growth in the next five years. Sri Lanka is an important part of that growth strategy,” said Robert during the brief interview along with Sri Lanka Managing Director and Country Head Chanakya Dissanayake.

In September, Acuity consolidated its leadership position in the global financial services outsourcing market with the acquisition of Cians Analytics (Cians), a provider of high-quality, cost-effective research and analytical support.

The acquisition represents the first bolt-on transaction made by Acuity since its buyout by Equistone. Cians’ product offering also includes LeverData, a proprietary data ingestion, validation and management platform which helps customers eliminate the data reliability issues that often plague financial services firms, saving them money, resources and valuable time.

Robert said the acquisition underlines Acuity’s aggressive strategy of acquiring technology and competitors. “We focus on great people and technologies and the acquisition of Cians is a good example,” he said.

Founded in 2009, Cians Analytics provides high-quality, cost-effective research and analytical support for global investment banks, private equity funds, corporations, and portfolio companies allowing them to do more with their time and significantly reduce operating costs.

Acuity plans to increase the talent pool to 10,000 in the next few years.  Despite global developments such as war between Russia and Ukraine and related shocks to the world economy including rising inflation and downturn in markets, Robert is of the view that the demand for outsourced research, analytics and technology solutions remains robust.

He cited factors such as remote working and better work-life balance post-COVID, the global talent shortage or its high cost, the quest to improve operational efficiencies and strategies to better leverage automation as key growth drivers for Acuity’s business.

He also said that Acuity’s ethos is to be a partner of and for institutional client’s internal management team to operate more efficiently and unlock their human capital, driving revenues higher and transforming operations.

In India, Acuity’s biggest base, it is planning to open a new delivery centre in Pune expanding from its existing footprint in Bengaluru and Gurugram.

Robert commended the Sri Lankan team for their commitment and resilience in serving its global customers uninterruptedly especially during the COVID-19 pandemic and the recent economic crisis.

Acuity’s Sri Lankan team serves over 50 leading global financial institutions. In July, the company announced Acuity’s Colombo-based employees will benefit from enhanced medical insurance cover, a significant increase in annual base salary as a long-term measure and an additional monthly cost-of-living allowance. This is in addition to increased salaries and performance bonuses awarded in April this year.

Sri Lanka Managing Director and Country Head Chanakya Dissanayake said: “Acuity Knowledge Partners has played an instrumental role in Sri Lanka’s capital market talent creation over the last two decades. 

“The organisation has established long standing relationships with all the major State universities and global professional bodies such as ACCA, CIMA and CFA, with whom it has close ties. Through these relationships Acuity is growing the pool of technically sound finance and research talent in Sri Lanka.”

 “As the country experiences increasing challenges, the company continues to invest substantially in its people, recognising the importance of professional services to the continued functioning of financial markets and contributing meaningfully to its employees, clients and communities,” he added.