Capita

Capita plc is an international business process outsourcing and professional services company headquartered in London. It is the largest business process outsourcing and professional services company in the United Kingdom, with an overall market share of 29% in 2016, and has clients in central government, local government and the private sector. It also has a property and infrastructure consultancy division which is the fourth largest multidisciplinary consultancy in the UK. Roughly half of its turnover comes from the private sector and half from the public sector. Whilst UK-focused, Capita also has operations across Europe, Africa and Asia. Established in 1984 and gaining its independence in 1987 management buyout, Capita's early business activities were largely orchestrated by Rod Aldridge, the company's first executive chairman. Since 1991, it has been listed on the London Stock Exchange. Various British government bodies have contracted services out to Capita, including the Ministry of Defence, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, Department for Work and Pensions and numerous NHS Trusts. Aldridge stepped down as the company's CEO in 2006 amid claims that a personal loan made to the Labour Party had influenced government contracts that were awarded to Capita. In February 2007, a Capita office in Victoria, London was subject to a letter bomb attack that injured one person. In September 2019, Capita announced that it was re-branding as a "purpose-led" living wage employer; however, it subsequently abandoned this position after reports emerged that thousands of its employees were being paid below the minimum wage. Across much of its existence, Capita has frequently engaged in acquisitions of other companies to fuel its growth, as well as the occasional divestment dependent upon circumstance; some of this acquisitions, such as of the 2015 purchase of a former government research operation responsible for food safety, has been subject to...