Capitolis, a capital markets tech firm that builds financial resource optimization tools for banks and institutional investors, has agreed to acquire eSecLending, an independent securities lending agent, from Parthenon Capital and eSecLending’s management team in a $200 million all-cash transaction. Boston-based eSecLending, founded in 2000, provides customized securities lending, auction, and collateral management solutions for pension funds, insurers, and asset managers, lending securities to major global banks, and will add roughly 120 employees to Capitolis. The main objective is to add securities lending as a complementary specialty finance capability alongside Capitolis’ existing optimization, repo, and financing offerings, and to expand its reach among large institutional asset owners; it is Capitolis’ fourth strategic acquisition in five years. Key players include Capitolis CEO and founder Gil Mandelzis, who called the deal transformational, Capitolis president Okan Pekin, eSecLending CEO Craig Starble, and Parthenon Capital, which is also making an undisclosed investment in Capitolis.

Capitolis Agrees $200M All-Cash Deal for Securities Lender eSecLending