Veritas forms consulting firm from PwC’s US public sector business

Veritas Capital has reached a deal to purchase the U.S. public sector business from PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (PwC). Upon closing of the deal, the acquired assets will be renamed and operate as an independent business.

PwC’s U.S. public sector business provides financial and strategy management services to federal, state and local municipal governments and agencies. The target employs nearly 1,500 partners and staff members serving long-standing client relationships, including: the Department of Defense, Homeland Security, Veterans Affairs, Health and Human Services, and the Department of State. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

London-based PwC overall operates as a consulting service specialist for analytics, finance, operations, risk management, benchmarking and security. With the sale of its U.S. public sector business, PwC now has a total of 16 businesses providing services across the tax, audit and consulting spectrum, a company spokesman tells Mergers & Acquisitions.

The deal creates a new platform company for Veritas, a New York-based private equity firm. Founded in 1998, Veritas invests primarily in companies that provide technology-enabled products and services to government and commercial clients. The PE firm has managed more than 70 acquisitions across the education, energy, government services, aerospace and defense, communications, healthcare, national security, and technology industries.

In January 2017, Veritas purchased the government IT division from tactical communications provider Harris Corp. (NYSE: HRS). The firm also acquired StandardAero, an independent provider of maintenance, repair and overhaul services to the aerospace industry, in 2015. Veritas raised a $1.87 billion fund in 2014. Abaco Systems Inc., Alion Science and Technology Corp., Anaren Inc., BeyondTrust Software Inc., KeyPoint Government Solutions Inc., SolAero Technologies Corp., Vencore Inc., and Verscend Technologies Inc. are among the firm’s current investments.

Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC (NYSE: MS) is acting as financial adviser to PwC, while Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP is serving as legal counsel. Schulte Roth & Zabel LLP is serving as legal counsel to Veritas, while Covington & Burling LLP is acting as regulatory counsel. Schulte Roth & Zabel is serving as deal counsel to Veritas.