Muggie van Staden, Obsidian Systems CEO.

Leading provider of end-to-end digital services and solutions Obsidian Systems, a specialist in Open Source technology, cloud adoption and big data, has entered into a strategic reseller agreement with Yugabyte, an established leader in open source Distributed SQL database technology.

By teaming up with Obsidian Systems, a trusted local expert who can quickly demonstrate the value and effectiveness of Distributed SQL database technology to South African enterprises, Yugabyte can expand into a critical regional ecosystem.

The partnership will add quick and measurable value to South African companies that are planning to move transactional applications to the cloud at scale.

Muggie van Staden, Obsidian Systems CEO, states, “Obsidian endeavours to partner with like-minded open source technologies that will add value to our customers' stack. And when we think about multi-cloud and hybrid cloud strategies and challenges of flexibility, scalability and security, Yugabyte ticks all the boxes”.

He says, “In a data-driven world, where every business looks to the CIO, CDO and CTO to lead the enterprise into the future, platform choice must always include innovative products that meet all your potential cloud architecture needs.”

Obsidian Systems adds that more South African companies are in the process of launching their digital transformation strategies and many require the expertise and influence of proven market leaders.

The company believes the partnership is a powerful development within the local channel, offering business leaders an alternative solution and access to reliable and robust infrastructure.

This agreement reflects the increasing global demand for Distributed SQL as delivered by Yugabye’s database technology and tools, as the cloud-native data layer for both systems of record and systems of engagement.

Martin Gaffney, Yugabyte EMEA Vice President, says: “We see significant market opportunity by working closely with this leading regional enterprise open source specialist, as so many organisations in the region are accelerating their digital transformation plans, driving fast to the cloud and demanding cloud-native technologies for true digital business success”.

He continued, “South Africa has always proved to be an innovative, early-adopter economy, and we’ve been looking for the ideal partner in this market. With this agreement, it looks like our search has ended with the perfect result for us, for Obsidian Systems and for the South African CIO.”

YugabyteDB is a natural complement to Obsidian’s existing technologies and services, as they align well with the needs of the region’s largest and most demanding transactional driven organisations, looking to accelerate their digital transformation strategies.

The context for the move is Yugabyte’s 2022 aim of expanding further into important new geographic markets and fuelling the firm’s growth across EMEA. Globally, Yugabyte completed a Series ‘C’ funding round for $188 million in October 2021, which valued the business at more than $1.3B.

Yugabyte officially established its EMEA business in May 2021 with a European HQ based in Surrey, the UK, and has been accelerating its growth across the region ever since. The firm’s strategy includes the appointment of complementary strategic partners in the region.