November 1, 2017 — Today’s announcement that private equity firm Primus Capital completed an investment in fusionZONE Automotive indicates the second tier of dealership website and digital marketing firms is gaining traction on the two giants in the space — Dealer.com and CDK Global. Terms of the deal were not disclosed but Primus generally keeps… Continue Reading
October 28, 2017 — CDK Global acquired enterprise reporting company Dashboard Dealership Enterprises (“DDE”), the company announced this week. The integration of DDE’s flagship product, Executive Eye, into the CDK platform will help CDK customers better measure their efficiency and profitability, the company says. As part of the acquisition, DDE CEO Josh Blick and COO William… Continue Reading
October 25, 2017 — Team Velocity Marketing scooped up video pre-roll production company, Car-Mercial, the company announced earlier this week. Car-Mercial’s video technology will be integrated into Team Velocity’s marketing automation platform, Apollo.Terms of the deal were not disclosed. With video being the fastest growing consumer medium, Team Velocity believes Car-Mercial’s dynamic video platform will… Continue Reading
UPDATED — October, 21, 2017 — Last month, the Trophy Automotive Group completed the purchase of four dealerships that were part of the eight-store Sage Automotive Group in the Los Angeles, CA area. Trophy, which was started by Nasser Watar in 2014 with the acquisition of Mercedes Benz of Encino, acquired West Covina Nissan, Universal… Continue Reading
October 20, 2017 — Teterboro Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram filed a class action lawsuit yesterday against Reynolds and Reynolds and CDK Global alleging various antitrust violations. The case was filed in United States District Court in the New Jersey District. Teterboro, who is a Reynolds and Reynolds client, alleges the two companies during the period… Continue Reading
October 20, 2017 — The Walser Automotive Group continues its aggressive growth strategy announcing this week that CEO Paul Walser is stepping down to take on the new role of managing OEM relationships and acquisitions. His brother President and COO Andrew Walser has been named CEO. The group also announced this week it has acquired… Continue Reading
October 18, 2017 — Assurant Inc. announced this morning it is acquiring The Warranty Group from TPG Capital in an enterprise deal valued at $2.5 billion. Assurant’s (NYSE: AIZ) share price jumped more than $6 to $101 on the news. With a $1.9 billion equity valuation for The Warranty Group — $2.5 billion with its… Continue Reading
October 12, 2017 — J.D. Power announced yesterday that Chief Executive Officer and President Finbarr O’Neill will retire from the company, effective March 2018. The search for his successor is underway. O’Neill, 65, will act as a Senior Advisor to the company following the transition to the new CEO. O’Neill led the firm for 10 years,… Continue Reading
September 6, 2017 — Scott Painter officially launched Fair, his newest venture this week in Los Angeles with plans to roll it out through out California by the end of the year and into other markets in 2018. The Banks Report first reported on the new venture last November. It’s a fintech mobile solution that provides… Continue Reading
August 29, 2017 — Jonathan Ord, CEO of CRM vendor DealerSocket, is stepping down as CEO of the company he founded with Brad Perry in 2001. Replacing Ord is Sejal Pietrzak, who is leaving her position as Chief Administration Officer at Active Network. Under Ord’s leadership, DealerSocket grew into one of the top CRM companies… Continue Reading