GBGroup plc, the specialist in identity intelligence solutions, has acquired the entire issued share capital of CDMS Limited, (trading as Transactis), a provider of data management services, from the Shop Direct Group for £6m. The combination of Transactis’ advanced anti-fraud services, marketing solutions and transactional data with GBG’s existing services and expertise will enable businesses to understand their customers identity in real-time with far greater accuracy.

Transactis’ unique data assets, derived from understanding the shopping habits of over 40m UK citizens, will also help GBG in strengthening processes that ensure genuine customers receive better service. It will help retailers, for instance, to understand purchaser profiles to customise and tailor the best possible service.

The data and services provided through the acquisition will help GBGroup’s clients, including Thomas Cook, FitnessFirst and Ikano in the UK, in the race to recognise and understand customers better – even when interacting across multiple channels.

Recognising who to deal with – and who to avoid – is also a vital component of driving out identity related frauds.  The UK saw a rise of over 60% in online fraud last year and, in the area of employee fraud, 63% of all the confirmed fraud recorded by CIFAS in the first half of 2014 was related to job applications where serious fraudulent declarations about employment history, qualifications or criminal records have been made. GBG is committed to providing its clients with the robust intelligence they need to make decisions aimed at protecting businesses and their customers.

Transactis provides GBGroup with a strong customer base across both public and private sectors, particularly within the retail sector. GBG will continue to partner with Shop Direct Group to develop its identity intelligence solutions to improve the online shopping experience and enhance its fraud screening capabilities

In summary the acquisition of Transactis will:

• Offer GBG clients even stronger marketing and data-related services, connecting with customers in real-time accurately and with relevance.
• Enable GBG to help businesses combat the threat of identity fraud in the cyber age by strengthening its Identity Verification and Anti-Fraud solutions with Transactics’ unique data sources
• Extend the GBG customer base with new customers such as Nationwide Building Society, Betfair, MBNA and HMRC

Richard Law, CEO at GBGroup, commented:

“The addition of the core capabilities of Transactis means our clients will receive best in class solutions that help them understand the identity of UK citizens and respond to their needs much more effectively. Transactis will also give us a massive lift in the battle against data driven crime and the misuse of identity information. The acquisition will arm GBG with enhanced skills and technology that will help businesses understand who they are dealing with – across multiple channels and in real time.

A spokesman for Shop Direct Group said

“GBGroup offers an excellent opportunity for the continued development of Transactis staff and customers. It is extremely well positioned to build upon Transactis’ existing reputation for industry leading insight and marketing services and we feel that, together, Transactis and GBG will continue to be a real force in the identity intelligence market.”