50-year-old Tampa education-tech firm receives $350M investment

A Tampa-based government and education-tech consulting firm has received a $350 million investment, catapulting its valuation to $1.25 billion and positioning the company for future growth. 

The investment, from global investment firm Ares Management Corp., makes national technology and advisory solutions firm MGT one of the first “unicorns” in the SLED industry, according to a statement. (SLED stands for state, local and education government contracting, while a unicorn is any privately held startup company with a valuation of more than $1 billion.) 

The $350 million investment, a recapitalization, makes Ares Management Corp the top investment manager for MGT, among other investors including Vistria Group, J.P. Morgan and WhiteHorse Capital, the release says. 

And the transaction validates MGTs strategy for becoming a leader in the SLED industry, CEO Trey Traviesa says. “With Ares’ support, we significantly expand our capacity to undertake larger acquisitions and accelerate the high-impact growth and transformation we set out to achieve in our ambitious value-creation plan,” Traviesa says.

Founded in 1975, MGT has expanded rapidly since new leadership took the helm in 2016, navigating the company through 13 acquisitions and periods of organic growth, the release states. In 2025, MGT ranked No. 830 on the Inc.com 5000 list of the nation’s fastest-growing private companies, the release says. That same year, MGT was ranked No. 6 on CRN’s Fast Growth 150 list, which recognizes the fastest-growing technology companies in North America. 

With backing from Ares, a $572 billion firm, MGT is now positioned to chase even larger acquisitions on the path to an eventual public offering, the release says. 

Chicago-based Vistria Group made a majority investment in the company in April 2023. Since then, MGT has tripled its value and greatly expanded its portfolio of specialized SLED technology and advisory services, the release says. When Vistra made its investment, MGT had around 450 employees and $170 million in revenue. 

Today, MGT boasts $600 million in revenue and a workforce of around 1,100 employee-owners, the release says. The company serves more than 2,500 clients and impacts more than 200 million people annually, the release says, including roughly 20 million kindergarten through 12th grade students.