BUSINESS COMBINATIONS

6 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2015

BUSINESS COMBINATIONS [Abstract]

BUSINESS COMBINATIONS

14. BUSINESS COMBINATIONS

On August 18, 2014, our subsidiary, ePlus Technology, inc., acquired the operating assets and assumed certain liabilities of Granite Business Solutions, Inc. dba Evolve Technology Group (“Evolve”). Located in Sacramento, CA, Evolve provided information security, collaboration, virtualization and data center solutions to an established customer base of state, local and educational institutions, as well as commercial enterprises. Our acquisition expands our presence in the western United States.

The total purchase price was $10.5 million, which consists of cash paid, amounts to be paid to Evolve upon collection of certain accounts receivables, and the fair value of contingent consideration. We estimated the fair value of the contingent consideration to be $2.0 million as of the acquisition date using a Monte Carlo simulation model. The maximum payout for contingent consideration is $2.5 million over 3 years. The purchase price has been allocated to the assets acquired and liabilities assumed based on their estimated fair values on the transaction date, including identifiable intangible assets of $4.0 million related to customer relationships with an estimated useful life of 6 years, and other net assets of $0.6 million. We recognized goodwill related to this transaction of $4.5 million, which was assigned to our technology reporting unit. The goodwill recognized in the acquisition is attributable to the acquired assembled workforce, their presence in the western United States, and expected synergies, none of which qualify for recognition as a separate intangible asset. Goodwill associated with the acquisition is deductible for tax purposes.