TIME dotCom Bhd announced that it has acquired a controlling stake in AVM Cloud Sdn, which is regarded as the leading cloud computing service provider in Malaysia. TIME dotCom shelled out over $14.5 million to purchase a 60 percent controlling stake in the company.

The acquisition deal comes with the condition that AVM buys over its subsidiary company Integrated Global Solutions Sdn Bhd. TIME dotCom confirmed that AVM already completed the acquisition, with the company paying approximately $1.3 million to obtain 40 percent stake in Integrated Global Solutions and make it a wholly-owned subsidiary of AVM.

Following the completion of both deals, AVM Cloud’s capital is set to increase as TIME dotCom gets issued new shares. The new shares are equivalent to the shares of AVM Cloud’s founding shareholders and the minority shareholders of Integrated Global Solutions, which have a total subscription price of around $1.9 million. 

This stake purchase in AVM Cloud Sdn marks the start of TIME dotCom’s plan to expedite the growth of its cloud computing business. AVM Cloud’s addition to the company brings a new range of product offerings that address the needs of enterprise customers throughout the Southeast Asian region. “This acquisition signals TIME’s efforts in accelerating the growth of cloud computing as the newest pillar of its business, alongside fixed line services, global network connectivity and data centres,” TIME dotCom said in a statement.

Serial-entrepreneur Afzal Abdul Rahim, TIME dotCom’s Commander-in-Chief, expressed enthusiasm over the prospects of having cloud computing as part of the company’s spectrum of products and services. “TIME is excited to grow cloud computing as the next pillar of our business. We believe we’ve found the right partners in AVM, considering their comprehensive product suite and customer base. We warmly welcome them to the TIME family and look forward to establishing a regional cloud business with them across ASEAN,” Rahim said.

TIME dotCom’s statement regarding the acquisition praised AVM Cloud for having an “entrepreneurially spirited business that encompasses the best that Malaysia has to offer,” noting that the company has built a strong foundation in offering cloud services that compete with and complement those being offered by other cloud service companies in the ASEAN region.

AVM Cloud is a homegrown Malaysian brand established by a quintet of Malaysian entrepreneurs. It grew to be among the leading VMware solutions providers not only in Southeast Asia but also in North Asia, serving more than 250 enterprise customers. Its range of products includes multi-tenancy virtual private cloud, dedicated cloud, hybrid cloud, an on-premise OPEX model called “Cloud-in-a-Box”, desktop-as-a-service, data protection, managed cybersecurity, and various storage and network solutions.

AVM Cloud Chief Executive Officer David Chan expressed elation in becoming part of the TIME dotCom family. “We are happy to have joined the TIME family as this has given AVM Cloud the opportunity to scale and grow and extend our products and services to the Group’s customer base,” Chan siad. He added that AVM Capital is looking forward to capitalizing on TIME’s clout in the region.

As of January 8, 5:00 PM GMT+8, TIME dotCom’s stock price rose by 2.70 percent or 0.36 points to $3.39 (13.68 MYR). The price is at its highest over the last five days, with 246,900 shares traded and the company’s market value at $2.047 billion.

Image credit: TIME dotCOM