Towers Watson (NASDAQ: TW), a global professional services company, announced today that it has acquired Acclaris, a provider of software-as-a-service (SaaS)-based technology and services for consumer-driven health care and reimbursement accounts, including health savings accounts (HSAs), health reimbursement arrangements (HRAs) and other consumer directed accounts. The acquisition enhances Towers Watson’s position as a leading benefits administration and exchange provider.

Account-based health plans (ABHPs) pair a health insurance plan with a tax-advantaged spending or reimbursement account such as an HSA or an HRA. Towers Watson research shows that adoption of these kinds of plans is growing rapidly. That research shows that approximately 50% of employers could offer account-based health plans (ABHPs) as their only option by 2017 – up from about 20% already doing so in 2015.

Founded in 2001, Acclaris offers flexible products that include integrated technology and services to support account-based benefits on a single platform in a scalable way. Acclaris supports 1.4 million accounts (as of March 2015) across all account-based benefit types: HRAs, HSAs, flexible spending accounts, commuter accounts and custom reimbursement accounts, with both technology and a global service model.

“Going forward, Towers Watson and Acclaris will enable clients of any size to offer benefits in new and cost-effective ways,” said Jim Foreman, managing director for Towers Watson’s Exchange Solutions segment. “Acclaris stands out from the competition for its operational efficiency, and its scalable and configurable SaaS-based technology and service delivery. We believe this combination will allow us to offer the end-to-end process for both traditional benefits administration and private benefits exchange solutions, and to deliver a seamless experience for our employer-clients, an exceptional experience for consumers and high-quality customer support for both.”

Acclaris is headquartered in Tampa, FL, with locations in Kansas and India. Since 2001, its team of over 600 people has worked with a number of employers, health plans, banks and third-party administrators as the technology and services backbone for their account-based benefit offerings. Acclaris administers 1.4 million health care accounts, working with 6,000 employers, including more than 40 Fortune 500 companies.

Acclaris’ CEO, Dean Mason, will join the leadership team of Towers Watson’s Exchange Solutions segment. Jim Foreman will continue to lead the overall segment.

“We’re in an era of convergence as banking and technology combine to enable advanced account-based benefit services,” said Mason. “We look forward to adding our vision and expertise in account administration to Towers Watson’s market-leading benefits administration and exchange-based solutions, and to helping its clients manage costs and encourage health care consumerism. Acclaris’ solution will add a new level of integration and ease of use to the Towers Watson benefits administration and private exchange offerings.”

The purchase price is $140 million, with the acquisition anticipated to have no impact on Towers Watson’s investor guidance in fiscal year 2015. Acclaris’ calendar year 2015 revenues are expected to be approximately $35 million. Additional information about the acquisition is available on the investor relations page at towerswatson.com.

Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP acted as legal advisor to Towers Watson. Cooley LLP acted as legal advisor to Acclaris.

About Acclaris

Acclaris provides the services and technology that health plans, benefit consultants and financial institutions rely on to deliver health care and reimbursement accounts to a growing market. Acclaris stands out from the competition for its operational efficiency, configurable (SaaS) technology and responsive services team. Partnering with Acclaris, clients of all sizes are able to deliver a range of innovative account options and an exceptional consumer experience. Learn more at acclaris.com.

About Towers Watson

Towers Watson (NASDAQ: TW) is a leading global professional services company that helps organizations improve performance through effective people, risk and financial management. With 15,000 associates around the world, the company offers consulting, technology and solutions in the areas of benefits, talent management, rewards, and risk and capital management. Learn more at towerswatson.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This document contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. You can identify these statements and other forward-looking statements in this document by words such as “may,” “will,” “would,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “plan,” “intend,” “continue,” or similar words, expressions or the negative of such terms or other comparable terminology. Such statements are based upon the current beliefs and expectations of Towers Watson’s management, and are subject to significant risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ from those set forth in the forward-looking statements.

The following factors, among others, could cause actual results to differ from those set forth in the forward-looking statements: a decline in client demand (for example, resulting from the reduced use of defined benefit plans); the risk of a disclosure breach of company or client data; the risk of translation exposure impacting our results, arising from foreign currency exchange, and interest rate fluctuations and volatility; the ability to successfully make suitable acquisitions and divestitures; the risk that the acquisitions of Acclaris, Saville Consulting or other acquisitions are not profitable or successful, or are not otherwise successfully integrated; our ability to protect client data and our information systems; the risk that potential changes in federal and state health care regulations, or future interpretation of existing regulations, may have a material adverse impact on our business; the risk that our Exchange Solutions or OneExchange businesses fail to maintain good relationships with insurance carriers, become dependent upon a limited number of insurance carriers or fail to develop new insurance carrier relationships; the risk that changes and developments in the health insurance system in the United States could harm our business; our ability to respond to rapid technological changes; the ability to recruit and retain qualified employees and to retain client relationships; and the risk that a significant or prolonged economic downturn could have a material adverse effect on Towers Watson's business, financial condition and results of operations. Additional risks and factors are identified under “Risk Factors” in Towers Watson’s most recent annual report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

You should not rely upon forward-looking statements as predictions of future events because these statements are based on assumptions that may not come true and are speculative by their nature. Towers Watson does not undertake an obligation to update any of the forward-looking information included in this document, whether as a result of new information, future events, changed expectations or otherwise.