KKR-backed eSSENTIAL Accessibility and JMI-backed Level Access to merge

• KKR and JMI will support growth of the combined company
• Tim Springer will serve as CEO and Mark Steele as President of the combined company
• The combined company will seek to aid organizations to provide equitable experiences for people with disabilities

KKR-backed eSSENTIAL Accessibility and JMI-backed Level Access have signed a definitive agreement to merge in a deal expected to close in mid-2022. KKR and JMI will continue to support the growth of the combined company. The merger will look to create an end-to-end digital accessibility solution for businesses and organizations. KKR’s investment is through its technology growth strategy.

KKR invested $55 million in Toronto-based eSSENTIAL Accessibility in May of 2021 through its Next Generation Technology Growth Fund II, which closed on $2.2 billion in 2020. Jake Heller, Head of KKR’s Technology Growth team in the Americas, said of the investment “We are thrilled to be investing in eA and look forward to leveraging KKR’s network and resources to support the company’s growth and expansion.”

JMI has been invested in Level Access since 2017.

Tim Springer will serve as CEO and Mark Steele as President of the merged organization. The company will be headquartered in Arlington and expects to invest in the growth of key offices in Canada and Argentina.

“Tim Springer and the Level Access team are pioneers of digital accessibility on whose shoulders the industry stands, champions of the accessibility community for over two decades,” said Mark Steele, eSSENTIAL Accessibility CEO and Co-Founder “In an advancing Environmental, Social and Governance era, this merger would expand our presence and enable new solutions.”

“Our mission is to make the digital world more accessible, and this match would make that vision more possible than ever before,” commented Timothy Springer, Level Access CEO and Founder.