e-conomic International A/S (‘e-conomic’), one of Europe’s leading Software as a Service (‘SaaS’) accounting and SME solution providers, backed by private equity investor HgCapital, announces that its holding company agreed to acquire a majority stake in Gothenburg-based SaaS accounting firm, SpeedLedger.

With 55 employees and a customer base of more than 25,000 companies, SpeedLedger is a Swedish leader in web-based accounting for micro businesses and the second largest company in Sweden’s web-based accounting sector. SpeedLedger has won several growth awards including DI Gasell for four consecutive years, and earned places in the Deloitte Technology Fast 50 (Sweden) and the Deloitte Technology Fast 500 (EMEA). SpeedLedger, which will continue to operate as an independent entity, will work closely with e-conomic to offer a full range of proprietary and third party solutions through a network of partners in the Swedish market.

The investment in SpeedLedger represents another step in e-conomic’s strategy to further internationalize the business, following e-conomic’s recent joint venture with leading Spanish accountancy network, CE Consulting Empresarial. The deal strengthens the company’s European leadership in SaaS accounting and the combination of SpeedLedger and e-conomic will create one of the largest SaaS solution providers for SMEs in the Swedish market.

HgCapital, who acquired e-conomic in July 2013, worked closely with both companies to provide investment for this transaction. HgCapital will continue to provide additional investment capital to support e-conomic’s ongoing international expansion.

e-conomic has an existing presence in the Swedish market as well as in its Danish home market, and many other countries across Europe, including Norway, Germany and Spain. The company has over 200 employees now serving more than 100,000 customers using the core online accounting system and more than 250,000 registered users, who make use of Debitoor (www.debitoor.com), an online, light, ‘freemium’ invoicing and accounting solution targeted towards freelancers and sole practitioners. Additionally, e-conomic offers to its customers through its network of more than 150 partners a wide range of third party SME software applications, including CRM and payroll.

e-conomic and Speedledger are well positioned to take advantage of the SME sector’s increasing trend towards SaaS accounting, which, according to Research house IDC, is expected to represent 50% of the accounting market over the next few years.