Cavendish Corporate Finance, the UK’s leading sell-side mid-market M&A firm, has advised the shareholders of Blayhall Professional Ltd (trading as Star), a global provider of Practice Management software solutions for accounting firms, to IRIS Software Group, one of the UK’s largest privately held software companies.

Star provides functionally rich and technically advanced Practice Management software for CPA firms. It uses a flexible modular approach, allowing clients to structure modules to accurately reflect their own workflows. The core system offers time and expenses, billing, scheduling, due dates/workflow and CRM. All modules are integrated into a single database solution.

Cavendish has extensive experience in the software & hardware technology sector, with recent deals including the sale of Star Payroll (a UK provider of payroll software) to IRIS Software Group, and the sale of a leading hardware distributor.

The Cavendish team was led by Joe Stelzer, a specialist in TMT and Industrials at Cavendish Corporate Finance, together with Mike Dinsdale, Associate Director.

Joe Stelzer commented:

“We are delighted to have advised on this transaction. IRIS is one of the UK’s largest privately held software companies; its backing and resource enables Star to develop and extend its reach to new markets and customers.

“Simultaneously, this acquisition forms a part of IRIS’s strategic plan, fueling international expansion in English speaking countries, particularly into the US.”