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By Suzanna Kerridge, 2 April 2001 17:01

NEWS The cash and stock deal comes only weeks after the services giant paid $670m for Sabre Holdings' outsourcing operations. Speaking to silicon.com, John Meyer, president of EDS EMEA, said: "Germany has the largest technology marketplace in Europe and we really needed a bigger presence there. When we discovered Systematics, we saw it was very strong in finance and insurance while EDS is strong in manufacturing." Meyer claimed the company also offered the opportunity to experiment with its ebusiness consultancy capabilities. "It also has very strong ebusiness solutions and consultancy and 80 per cent of their business are traditional EDS-type businesses. This showed a way to integrate e-solutions into the business but still have the security of recurring traditional business." Meyer added that of all the outsourcing companies considered, Systematics offered the richest potential as it has been tripling its annual revenue. However, the acquisition trail does not end in Germany. Meyer claimed he is looking at options in France and the Nordic countries. But there is no hurry to buy, he said. Under the terms of the deal, EDS has agreed to pay $430m in cash and $140m in stock to acquire the outstanding Systematics shares. Systematic shareholders are expected to be paid $27 a share to enable EDS to buy back the remaining 70 per cent of shares.