MONTREAL – It was one of the worst kept secretes in trucking, but when the dust settled it was TransForce that came away with Dynamex, a major North American same-day delivery and logistics provider, based in Dallas.

As a so-called "mystery" bidder, TransForce was in a back-and-forth bidding war with the Greenbriar Equity Group for the acquisition of Dynamex.

TransForce’s latest US$248 million offer, which trumped Greenbriar’s previously accepted bid, was approved by Dynamex’s board of directors this week.

The deal effectively ends Greenbriar’s merger agreement with Dynamex, which will have to pay a termination fee of about $7.7 if shareholders rubberstamp TransForce’s superior bid.

"The acquisition of Dynamex will enhance service to existing customers while proposing a powerful service offering to potential clients, as Dynamex specializes almost exclusively in same-day delivery services, a segment generally not offered by TransForce, and by opening doors to the U.S. markets," TransForce chairman, president and CEO Alain Bedard said in a statement.

Dynamex, which derives 40 percent of its revenue in Canada, employs more than 1,500 workers and has about 3,700 independent contractors.

David Newman, a transportation and industrial products analyst with Cormark Securities says the deal, TransForce’s first major foray into the U.S., solidifies the Canadian trucking giant’s position in the package & courier segment.

Newman tells todaystrucking.com that the deal allows TransForce to consolidate its footprint into more populated and business-oriented markets.

Other synergies could come in the form of real estate consolidation and removal of redundant assets.

Although Dynamex was seen somewhat of a competitor, the acquisition’s impact on pricing pressure is expected to be small "as TransForce did not operate extensively in this space and Dynamex will continue to operate on a standalone basis within the TransForce portfolio," says Newman.