British International Investment plc (BII), the UK’s development finance institution and impact investor, today announced the expected exit of its investment in iMerit, a global provider of expert data AI solutions, following the pending acquisition of iMerit by ExlService Holdings (EXL), a US-listed data and AI company.
The acquisition is valued at up to $310 million in upfront and future consideration and is expected to close in the third quarter of 2026, subject to customary closing conditions.
Founded in 2012, iMerit was established with the vision of bringing a diverse talent pool from underserved backgrounds into the digital workforce. The company provides high-quality data annotation, model training and evaluation services that support AI systems across sectors including healthcare, agriculture, autonomous systems and financial services.
BII first invested in iMerit in 2019, supporting its growth and expansion across India, Bhutan and the United States. The investment helped scale the business while promoting economic inclusion through the creation of skilled digital jobs, particularly for women. Today, iMerit employs thousands of people, around 80 per cent from under-resourced communities and over half women, alongside a growing focus on higher-value generative AI and agentic AI services.
Abhinav Sinha, MD and Head Industries, Technology and Services, BII, said: “We invested in iMerit to support the growth of a high-quality digital business that is creating economic opportunities for underserved communities. Over the course of our investment, the business has evolved into a globally recognised provider of AI data solutions, building strong capabilities in advanced data and generative AI services, and in supporting enterprises in scaling AI capabilities.
“This exit reflects the progress achieved and positions the company for its next phase of growth as part of EXL’s global platform.”
Radha Basu, CEO and founder of iMerit, commented: “We see EXL as an ideal leader in this defining moment for AI. We can build on our work with AI innovators and bring those insights to companies seeking to unlock their proprietary data. Both companies share a belief that specialised high-quality data is the foundation of AI success. We are excited to multiply our impact through EXL’s industry expertise, complementary technology and trusted enterprise relationships.”
Avendus Capital acted as the exclusive financial advisor to iMerit and its shareholders on this transaction.
