French BPO giant Webhelp has acquired its Brazilian counterpart Grupo Services, winning access to dozens of deep-pocketed multinational clients in Latin America.
Curitiba-based Grupo Services employs around 9,000 people and is one of a few Latin American BPOs using artificial intelligence (AI) to a maximum extent in contact center services.
Brazil is a large market for BPO operators, accounting for around 25% of the region’s customer services industry. Grupo Service’s clients include the likes of Claro, Tim, Banco Inter, Santander, Oi and Cielo.
Webhelp has not disclosed how much it paid for the Brazilian firm but claimed that the acquisition would position it to increase annual revenue up to US$2.7 billion.
Grupo Services makes most of its money providing omnichannel customer service, and its technology division develops AI solutions such as chatbots. Webhelp said that Grupo Service would add an “impressive portfolio of technology-driven services’ to its offerings, including chatbots, omnichannel orchestration, self-service technologies and CX journey design.”
Webhelp is not new to Latin America. It already operates in Peru, Mexico, Colombia, El Salvador and Nicaragua.
Grupo Services will soon start offering Portuguese language services to Webhelp’s existing clients, while the French firm will offer a helping hand for Grupo Services’ clients overseas.
“We are excited about being able to offer our existing clients immediate access to the significant domestic market in Brazil while also supporting local clients with an ability to scale through our leading global footprint,” said Olivier Duha, CEO of Webhelp.
