MONTREAL, Aug. 18, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — SOVRA (formerly mdf commerce) (“SOVRA” or “the Company”), North America’s leading public sector procurement platform, announced today a series of strategic updates designed to support the Company in becoming a leading GovTech platform in North America. These include the appointment of a new CEO, the acquisition of Canadian-based government intelligence platform Ontopical, and the divestiture of six non-core business units to Valsoft Corporation (“Valsoft”) and another Canadian-based strategic software group specializing in vertical SaaS acquisitions.
Tom Spengler Named SOVRA CEO
SOVRA Board Member and GovTech expert Tom Spengler has been appointed CEO, effective immediately. Luc Filiatreault, who has served as CEO for six years, will transition to the SOVRA Board and an advisory role.
Tom is a seasoned technology entrepreneur, advisor, and investor with over two decades of experience in the Government Software space. Through his work with SaaS companies, AI-powered platforms and civic engagement tools, Tom has helped drive modernization across local, state, and federal agencies. His expertise as a GovTech operator and advisor spans strategic planning, product-market fit, go-to-market execution, capital raising, and long-term scalability for startups and growth-stage ventures.
During Luc’s tenure, the Company grew through strategic acquisitions while building a strong foundation to become a GovTech category leader. Luc was instrumental in shepherding SOVRA through its successful transition to becoming a private company when it was acquired by funds managed by KKR in 2024. Under Luc’s leadership, SOVRA has become one of the largest software companies in Montreal.
SOVRA Acquires Ontopical
The appointment of Tom as CEO comes as SOVRA sharpens the Company’s strategic focus on the public sector through the acquisition of Ontopical, an AI-driven government intelligence platform that helps suppliers identify early-stage opportunities before RFPs are issued. Headquartered in Calgary, Ontopical’s proprietary AI, “Oliver,” analyzes more than 65,000 public data sources to deliver pre-RFP insights. Pre-RFP intelligence is a natural extension of SOVRA’s supplier platform, giving vendors more time to identify, prepare for, and win government contracts.
The Ontopical acquisition lays the foundation for SOVRA’s new AI Center of Excellence, which will accelerate the development of intelligent features and automation across the SOVRA platform for both suppliers and public sector buyers.
Divestitures of Non-Core Businesses
In conjunction with the acquisition of Ontopical, the Company has completed the divestiture of six non-core businesses, enabling a more concentrated allocation of capital resources toward SOVRA’s core operations and the advancement of digital procurement solutions within the public sector. Polygon, The Broker Forum and Carrus have been sold to Valsoft, a Montreal-based vertical software acquirer, and Jobboom, KCentric and Orckestra have been sold to another strategic software group specializing in vertical SaaS acquisitions. These businesses have been acquired by leading specialists in vertical software who are well positioned to support their continued innovation and long-term success in their respective sectors.
These deliberate portfolio optimization initiatives underscore SOVRA’s strategic commitment to establishing the preeminent GovTech platform across North America.
Looking Ahead
“I am thrilled to step into this role and work alongside the talented team at SOVRA,” said Tom Spengler. “Having served on SOVRA’s board for the past year, I have seen firsthand the incredible potential of our technology and our people. I am deeply passionate about SOVRA’s mission and look forward to building on the strong foundation that Luc has established, particularly in growing our platform and further strengthening our position in the GovTech market. The acquisition of Ontopical represents a meaningful step forward in our overall strategy, and we look forward to welcoming Clayton and the team to SOVRA.”
“It has been an honor to lead SOVRA through such a transformative period, and I look forward to continuing on the Board and in an advisor capacity,” said Luc Filiatreault. “I am proud of what we have accomplished together, from expanding our GovTech footprint to successfully navigating the transition to a private company and rebranding to SOVRA. The organization is well-positioned for the future, and I have full confidence in Tom’s ability to lead the company forward.”
“We’ve built something powerful, and now we get to scale it faster than ever,” said Clayton Feick, CEO of Ontopical, who will assume the role of President of SOVRA Supplier, alongside Ontopical founder Derrick Koenig who will lead the Supplier product team. “Joining SOVRA gives us the reach, resources, and platform to help thousands more businesses gain an advantage by connecting with public sector demand, early and effectively.”
About Tom Spengler
Tom Spengler is an accomplished executive with more than two decades of leadership experience in the GovTech industry, having held roles as a CEO, advisor, board member, entrepreneur, and investor. He is passionate about government transformation through cutting-edge technology, civic innovation, and public sector leadership. Tom brings operational expertise as a three-time GovTech 100 CEO and is the co-founder of Granicus, a leading civic tech platform. He has served as a Board Member at Granicus, PrimeGov, Rock Solid Technologies, CivStart, Automotus, and SOVRA.
About SOVRA
SOVRA (formerly mdf commerce) brings together over two decades of expertise, uniting the strengths of trusted brands like Bidnet Direct, Periscope, and MERX under one platform. Today, SOVRA connects more than one million suppliers with over 7,000 public sector agencies across North America, creating the largest, most dynamic procurement network on the continent.
For agencies, SOVRA simplifies sourcing, expands vendor access, and drives better procurement outcomes. For suppliers, it opens the door to real opportunities, giving businesses of all sizes a direct path to government contracts.
Focused on transparency, efficiency, and impact, SOVRA delivers modern public procurement solutions that help agencies optimize budgets and help suppliers grow.
Learn more at http://www.SOVRA.com.
About Ontopical
Ontopical helps companies win new business with governments by providing complete monitoring of agency, state and local government activities across North America. The AI Copilot, Oliver, is at the core of our government market intelligence platform and provides business development teams with curated opportunities, and actionable answers to win more bids. Every day, Ontopical mines data from more sources and from across more formats and geographies than any other local government intelligence platform, equipping customers in engineering, construction, telecommunications, technology, software, health services and other industries to build sales pipeline and improve conversions. Find out more at http://www.ontopical.com.
Media Contact:
Janie Gagnon
Communications Advisor, SOVRA
Janie.Gagnon@mdfcommerce.com
Martin Cej
Partner, FGS Longview
Martin.cej@fgslongview.com
