Wolters Kluwer subsidiary CCH has made its second kiwi acquisition in the space of a year, purchasing Christchurch-based accounting software company Acclipse for an undisclosed sum.

The deal follows the purchase of Mt Maunganui-based Business Fitness last August. The value of this deal was also kept quiet.

Since its founding in 2004 as a provider of online, collaborative solutions for accounting firms, Acclipse has grown to service over 1000 clients and employ 55 staff.

The sale marks the second success for Acclipse founder Mike Chisholm, whose previous business, CA Systems, was sold to MYOB in 1999.

Chisholm says the Acclipse deal will allow the company to focus on its core business, while CCH and Wolters Kluwer take care of expanding the Acclipse customer base.

"The global reach of CCH and Wolters Kluwer will allow us to expand the reach of our iFirm and iBizz products, and integrate these with relevant content sources to bring accountants and their clients together,” Chisholm says.

Russell Evans, CEO of Wolters Kluwer Asia Pacific, says the Acclipse suite ‘will lie at the heart of what we do’.

"This acquisition will respond to the growing demand from accounting firms for genuine cloud-based software to support a 24/7, value-added service to clients,” Evans says, "while lowering cost of ownership.

"We firmly believe that cloud computing has the potential to transform how accountants work with their clients.”

Image: Mike Chisholm.