Wolters Kluwer Tax & Accounting has acquired CPE Link, an online provider of continuing professional education for accountants, tax preparers and financial advisors.
The acquisition will expand Wolters Kluwer's existing e-learning products and enable the company to reach a broader range of customers.
CPE Link is based in San Jose, Calif., and was founded in 2008. The company has five full-time employees and serves more than 10,000 practitioners in the tax and accounting space. Through its web-based learning management system, CPE Link offers a way for practitioners to meet their CPE requirements and stay abreast of the latest industry changes via live webcasts, and multi-media, mobile friendly on-demand courses. The transaction is expected to have a positive but immaterial impact on Wolters Kluwers’ adjusted earnings per share, while generating a return on investment above Wolters Kluwer's cost of capital within three to five years.
"The acquisition of CPE Link allows us to strengthen our current learning offerings, expand our product line to address tax and accounting professionals' specific needs, and cater to more practitioners with a broader range of targeted online learning opportunities," said Josh Braunstein, executive vice president and general manager of Wolters Kluwer Tax & Accounting, Research & Learning, in a statement. "CPE Link offers an easy way for today's practitioners to meet all of their mandatory CPE requirements and keep up with the latest industry changes, which is very much in line with our commitment to delivering content and tools that are simple, practical, accurate and allow people to gain faster insight."
