Outsourcing Inc. (2427:TYO), the third-largest staffing firm in Japan, announced that it has agreed to acquire Irish recruitment firm Cpl Resources.

The value of the acquisition is approximately €318 million.

The acquisition has been approved by the company’s board of directors but is still subject to approval by Cpl’s shareholders and the Irish High Court. Cpl’s board of directors has also unanimously recommended that its shareholders vote in favour of the acquisition.

The company’s wholly-owned subsidiary Outsourcing Talent Ireland Limited will acquire all issued and to-be-issued shares of Cpl through a scheme of arrangement.

Outsourcing said it that by acquiring Cpl’s extensive customer base and widely ranged HR services, the company believes that it can further expand its business scale and portfolio in the European market as well as globally.

The acquisition will be funded through Outsourcing’s cash reserves and externally raised capital. It will be completed during the first quarter of the fiscal year 2021 ended March 2021.

Outsourcing added that the impact of the acquisition on the company’s current fiscal year’s consolidated financial results is negligible.

“The offer from Outsourcing acknowledges the quality of Cpl and the strength of its future prospects, both standalone and as part of Outsourcing,” John Hennessy, Chairman of Cpl said. “The terms of the proposed transaction represent an attractive premium in cash and crystallise the substantial long-term value potential of Cpl today.  The Cpl Board believes that the offer from Outsourcing, if approved, will begin an exciting new chapter for our stakeholders, particularly our employees and our clients."

Separately, Outsourcing today also reported results for the third quarter ended 30 September 2020. Revenue was up slightly by 0.1% when compared to the same period last year. Revenue totalled JPY 89.95 billion for the third quarter.

The group also reported revenue for the nine months ended 30 September 2020. Revenue fell 1.8% when compared to the same period last year. The group said the pandemic had negatively impacted its results for the first and second quarter.

Earlier this week Outsourcing announced it finalised a deal for a joint venture with Dexerials Corp. to manufacture microdevices. The joint venture, OSCC Co. Ltd., will begin operations on 1 January 2021.

Looking ahead, the company forecasted revenue of JPY 365 billion for the full year ended 31 December 2020.

Shares in Outsourcing closed at JPY 1,151.00 (USD 11.05), up 9.83% on the day and 8.43% below its 52-week high of 1,257.00 (USD 12.07), set on 8 November 2019. The company has a market cap of JPY 125.15 billion (USD 1.20 billion)