ABRY is cleared by U.S. to buy Kore Wireless

Kore Wireless Group Inc is being purchased by ABRY Partners VII LP, the firm’s $1.6 billion flagship fund, according to a filing.

A spokesman for Kore Wireless declined to comment. ABRY Partners did not return a phone call or email from Buyouts.

Based in Alpharetta, Georgia, and with offices in Toronto, Australia and Singapore, Kore Wireless describes itself as the largest provider of global machine-to-machine (M2M) network connectivity to businesses, according to its website.

Chris Scatliff, the founder of Kore, formerly worked as president and CEO of UUNet Canada, which is now called MCI Canada. Terence Jarman, chairman of Kore, also works as CEO of Terrdian Inc, a privately held global investment and consulting company in the technology and telecom sectors. Richard Burston, vice chairman of Kore, founded Regency Capital International Ltd, a London-based merchant bank.

The company’s blog highlights practical uses of M2M technology, such as helping track down cars that illegally pass stopped school buses or helping to forecast the impact of hurricanes.

Meanwhile, ABRY Partners has been on the fundraising trail for ABRY Partners VIII, which drew a $30 million commitment from the Virginia Retirement System and a $25 million commitment from the Pennsylvania State Employees’ Retirement System over the summer, among other pledges. ABRY is targeting $1.9 billion for the buyout pool.

Founded in 1989, ABRY Partners bills itself as a specialist solely in media, communications and business and information service investments.

ABRY Partners’s communication company portfolio currently includes Airband, Basefarm, Datapipe, Emerging Makets Communications, Grande Communications, Home Town Cable, JAB Broadband, RCN Cable, Securus, Sidera Networks, Telx and Xand, according to its website.