Sitel to buy Sykes Enterprises in $2.2bn deal

Sykes Enterprises has agreed to be bought by Sitel Group in a $2.2bn deal.

Under the terms of the acquisition, Sitel will pay $54 per share in cash. This is a 31.2% premium to the Sykes closing price on Thursday.

President and chief executive officer Chuck Sykes said: "This combination marks a major milestone in our 40-plus year operating history. Thanks to the hard work of our team members, this transaction validates the execution of our vision, strategy, our differentiated full lifecycle business model and promises immediate and certain value for our stockholders at an attractive premium.

"As we embark on the next phase of our journey, there is an opportunity to take the business to historic heights with a proven partner with similar culture and values. In Sitel Group, I am confident that we have a valuable partner with a solid heritage of deep industry knowledge and experience, solid industry reputation, a shared vision and a people-first culture to better serve customers."

The deal is expected to close in the second half of the year.

Sykes is a full lifecycle provider of global customer experience management services, multichannel demand generation and digital transformation, while Sitel is a provider of customer experience products and solutions.