Refinitiv buys the Red Flag Group as it expands due diligence offering
Data provider Refinitiv is set to expand its due diligence offering as it announces its acquisition of risk firm the Red Flag Group.
Refinitiv said it was “expanding its suite of due diligence offerings” with the acquisition of what it described as a “leading provider of workflow, data, due diligence and ratings solutions”.
The Red Flag Group is a Hong Kong-based compliance risk firm with offices located in the US, Asia, the Middle East and Europe.
With more than 900 clients, its products include Integrawatch, which monitors negative compliance issues, and Compliance Desktop, a platform used to identify and manage risk.
The acquisition comes at a pivotal time given the growth of due diligence services as businesses tackle new challenges due to the pandemic, including supply chain resilience, as well as increased focus on ESG due diligence.
Refinitiv said the addition of the Red Flag Group’s services will add to its existing due diligence capabilities and result in a “comprehensive set of tools and services to assist in customer and third-party risk mitigation”.
“We chose to join Refinitiv because they offer the prospect of further growth and investment,” said Scott Lane, Founder and chief executive of The Red Flag Group. “The opportunity to build an extensive suite of due diligence products and capabilities to better serve our growing customer base is an exciting prospect.”
Phil Cotter, managing director of Refinitiv’s risk business said: “The Red Flag Group’s strong corporate customer base and customer-facing technology complement our traditional strength in financial services, rich and diverse datasets and automation capabilities.”
Refinitiv itself is still tied up in talks with the London Stock Exchange over a blockbuster $27bn takeover bid.
EU antitrust regulators will make a decision on the bid on 16 December after resuming their investigation into the deal.
Europe’s competition regulator has voiced concerns that London’s bond-trading platform MTS and Refinitiv, which owns bond platform Tradeweb, would have too large a market share.