NEBS to Acquire Check Systems Manufacturer/Marketer

Groton, MA-based multititle office products cataloger New England Business Service (NEBS) on April 24 agreed to buy Dallas-based Safeguard Business Systems, a manufacturer/marketer of checks, check-writing systems, and business forms for small businesses, for $72.5 million. The acquisition will "solidify NEBS’s leadership position" in serving the small business market, NEBS chairman/CEO Robert Murray said in a statement.

The $158 million Safeguard, whose customer database includes more than 600,000 small businesses, sells through 360 distributors in the U.S. and Canada, and on its Website. The transaction is expected to close in early June.