As AI-driven energy demands surge, AppDirect’s forward-thinking acquisition reinforces its role as the everything store for businesses to buy, sell, and manage all critical services with the support of an experienced advisor

AppDirect, the world's leading B2B commerce platform, today announced a first-of-its-kind move to power the next era of AI-driven business services: the acquisition of Broker Online Exchange (BOX), North America's leading retail energy network. Through this acquisition, AppDirect is continuing to expand and redefine how their partner network can sell, manage and optimize the critical services their customers rely on.

According to Gartner®, “The long-term view is unshakable: electricity demand is projected to grow 42% by 2035. Affordable, accessible energy is a core enabler of economic competitiveness and an essential hedge against climate driven instability.”¹ This acquisition will enable AppDirect to broaden its portfolio of solutions—which currently includes cloud, telco, mobility, hardware, AI and now, energy—that its advisor community can offer their end business clients.

With energy demand projected to grow dramatically over the next 10 years, BOX provides over 2000 independent energy brokers access to the widest range of top electricity and gas suppliers, instant pricing, back office support and expansive industry expertise. Its My Service Cloud (MSC) platform supplies brokers with an energy broker CRM that assists in creating contracts and providing pricing, commissions and automated contract renewal management. Through this acquisition, AppDirect will add these capabilities to its expansive solution portfolio, which technology advisors can offer to their clients. Similarly, BOX brokers will gain access to AppDirect’s technology solutions to sell and provide to their end clients to enable them to expand their share of wallet.

“AppDirect’s deep commitment to its technology advisors mirrors BOX’s commitment to our energy broker community, so partnering with the team is a natural fit, providing incredible opportunities,” said Arthur Gruen, CEO of BOX. “AppDirect has a diverse catalog of services and procurement platforms to manage those services ongoing. This, in turn, gives our energy broker community an entirely new set of solutions to add even more value to their customers, expand their share of wallet and quickly grow revenue.”

AppDirect’s acquisition of BOX, following its recent acquisitions of Builtfirst, Firstbase and its impending acquisition of vCom, is another strategic enhancement that supports its vision of becoming the everything store for businesses through its advisors. By adding BOX’s energy expertise to its catalog, AppDirect further solidifies its position as a marketplace and unified IT lifecycle management platform that supports a wide range of services—expanding its dedication to ease the lives of business leaders and offering additional value to technology advisors and brokers.

“Business is entering a new era where technology alone isn’t enough; it also needs the infrastructure that powers it,” said Nicolas Desmarais, AppDirect’s Chairman and CEO. “By bringing energy into our marketplace, AppDirect is setting a new standard for how businesses buy and manage the critical services they need to succeed, powered by our advisor and broker community. We believe the future belongs to companies that control the foundation, and we are proud to be the first to take this step.”

This acquisition is expected to provide an upside opportunity for both BOX and AppDirect customers and partners. A&D Global Advisors LLC/M&A Securities Group Inc. served as exclusive financial advisors to Broker Online Exchange LLC in this transaction. The BOX brand will continue to operate in the market and provide the same level of quality support its partners have come to expect.

To learn more about AppDirect, connect with our team or head to appdirect.com. To learn more about BOX, go to brokeronlinexchange.com.

1. Gartner, Inc. 7 Trends Shaping the Future of Electricity, Lauren Wheatley, Sarah Watt, Lloyd Jones, Shanna Grafeld, Tsuneo Fujiwara, Chet Geschickter, Sabu Mathai, 1 May 2025
   
   GARTNER is a registered trademark and service mark of Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the U.S. and internationally and is used herein with permission. All rights reserved.

About AppDirect

AppDirect is a B2B subscription commerce platform company that brings together technology providers, advisors, and businesses to simplify how they buy, sell, and manage technology. More than 1,000 providers, 10,000 advisors, and 5 million subscribers rely on the AppDirect ecosystem of subscription marketplaces to power their innovation, growth, and success. For more information, visit appdirect.com and follow us on LinkedIn.

About Broker Online Exchange

Broker Online Exchange (BOX) is the largest, most flexible retail energy network in North America. It meets the needs of commercial customer advisors, energy brokers and referral partners by providing direct access to North America’s top energy suppliers and markets. Broker Online Exchange also provides personalized support and flexible payment plans to its network of energy brokers and partners.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250603914858/en/

“Business is entering a new era where technology alone isn’t enough; it also needs the infrastructure that powers it,” said Nicolas Desmarais, AppDirect’s Chairman and CEO.