Data Action's First Year with Vencora: Building the Foundations for Sustainable Growth

"Our identity, our reason for being, remains exactly the same, What has changed is that we now have the strength and insight of Vencora to back it."

When Data Action joined Vencora one year ago in May 2025, it marked an important milestone for both organizations. For Vencora, the acquisition expanded its presence in Australia and added the first Australian-based banking technology company. For Data Action, it opened a new chapter in a story that began in 1986, when the company was founded by eight local credit unions in South Australia.

Data Action is a trusted provider of core and digital banking solutions for challenger banks, customer-owned banks, credit unions, and financial services membership organizations. 

One year in, CEO David Cook and Deputy CEO and Chief Customer Officer Jarrod Sawers say the experience of joining Vencora has been challenging, clarifying, and energizing. 

"It has been the hardest and most invigorating year in Data Action's recent history," Cook reflected. "We did the difficult work to build the right foundations, and now we know exactly where we are going and that we have a genuine partner in Vencora cheering us on."

Autonomy with practical support

Data Action entered the acquisition with optimism, along with the natural uncertainty that comes with a change in ownership. The company had heard Vencora describe itself as a ‘forever home’ and a place where acquired businesses retain autonomy while gaining access to support, investment, expertise, and a broader community of companies with relevant experience.

That balance quickly became one of the defining themes of the first year. Data Action maintained its brand and continued to operate independently, while gaining access to Vencora's global portfolio of financial services technology companies and the broader Constellation Software network.

"The breadth and immediacy of support has been the standout positive," Cook said. "From day one we benefited from group buying power, strategic playbooks, and connections to related companies who were generous with their time and experience."

The support was practical and immediate. Working with other portfolio companies within Vencora helped Data Action think through recurring revenue approaches, pricing discipline, and market dynamics. Shared insight from the other portfolio companies in areas such as cybersecurity and account management also gave the leadership team a broader base of experience to lean on.  

Through access to an AI Accelerator program, Data Action gained connections and expertise that helped the business move faster and make decisions with greater confidence than it could have without being a part of Vencora.

Same identity, stronger backing

Joining Vencora has allowed Data Action to make decisions with a clearer view of the long-term health of the business and the clients it serves.

Throughout the transition, Data Action has remained focused on preserving the qualities that made it a trusted partner in the first place. Headquartered in Adelaide, the company continues to provide core banking, digital banking, cybersecurity, data reporting, and related services for the Australian financial services market.

That distinction matters for customers who rely on Data Action for critical banking infrastructure. The promise of Vencora was not to replace Data Action's identity, but to reinforce it with additional capability, investment, perspective, and long-term support.

One of the clearest examples is artificial intelligence. As part of Vencora, Data Action gained access to executive sponsorship, specialist expertise, and investment that helped the company move from exploration to practical use cases. AI is now a priority both as an internal capability and as a way to help clients improve operations, customer experience, and efficiency.

Looking ahead

After one year in the Vencora portfolio, Cook and Sawers have clear advice for other companies preparing for a similar transition: believe the message. They describe Vencora's promise as genuine: acquired companies are trusted to know their businesses, while also being constructively challenged by leaders who understand how software companies scale over time.

The next two years will be focused on deepening client relationships, unlocking more potential across Data Action's customer base, broadening market presence, and accelerating real AI use cases. The first year was a year of rebuilding, refocusing, and setting the business up for sustainable growth with a long-term partner invested in its success.