Boss Insights - Tech M&A News Round Up - April 2022

Elon Musk to Acquire Twitter for $44 Billion
San Francisco - 25th April 2022 - Twitter, Inc. has announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to be acquired by an entity wholly owned by Elon Musk, for $54.20 per share in cash in a transaction valued at approximately $44 billion. Upon completion of the transaction, Twitter will become a privately held company. Bret Taylor, Twitter's Independent Board Chair, said, "The Twitter Board conducted a thoughtful and comprehensive process to assess Elon's proposal with a deliberate focus on value, certainty, and financing. The proposed transaction will deliver a substantial cash premium, and we believe it is the best path forward for Twitter's stockholders." Commenting on the deal, Elon Musk said: "Free speech is the bedrock of a functioning democracy, and Twitter is the digital town square where matters vital to the future of humanity are debated. I also want to make Twitter better than ever by enhancing the product with new features, making the algorithms open source to increase trust, defeating the spambots, and authenticating all humans. Twitter has tremendous potential – I look forward to working with the company and the community of users to unlock it."
https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/elon-musk-to-acquire-twitter-301532245.html

Synopsys to Acquire WhiteHat Security from NTT
Mountain View, California - 27th April 2022 - Synopsys, Inc. has announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire WhiteHat Security, a provider of application security Software-as-a-Service (SaaS). Under the terms of the transaction, Synopsys will pay approximately $330 million in cash. The addition of WhiteHat Security will provide Synopsys with significant SaaS capabilities and market-segment-leading dynamic application security testing (DAST) technology to strengthen what is considered one of the industry's broadest application security testing portfolios. Synopsys and WhiteHat Security, which was acquired by NTT Security Corporation in 2019, share a vision for delivering SaaS-based security testing solutions and building security into the software development lifecycle.
https://news.synopsys.com/2022-04-27-Synopsys-to-Acquire-WhiteHat-Security-from-NTT

Wipro to Buy SAP Consulting Firm Rizing for $540 Million
New York and Bangalore, India - 26th April 2022 - Global information technology, consulting, and business process services company, Wipro Limited, has announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Rizing Intermediate Holdings, Inc, a global SAP consulting firm, significantly expanding its breadth of capabilities in helping businesses transform into intelligent enterprises. Rizing is the latest in a series of acquisitions by Wipro, underscoring the company’s ambitious growth agenda. Rizing’s high-touch approach, along with its industry expertise and SAP consulting capabilities in enterprise asset management, consumer industries, and human experience management, will be instrumental in advancing Wipro’s position as a sought-after advisor for clients’ most complex SAP transformations.
https://www.wipro.com/newsroom/press-releases/2022/wipro-to-acquire-rizing-to-create-an-sap-consulting-powerhouse/

Accenture Acquires Ergo to Expand Data & AI Capabilities and Accelerate Data-Led Transformation on the Cloud
Buenos Aires, Argentina - 21st April 2022 - Accenture has acquired data-centered business, Ergo, that helps companies create a culture of data-driven, decision-making using big data, analytics and artificial intelligence (AI). Ergo’s team of 200 data specialists will join the Data & AI team within Accenture Cloud First. Financial terms of the acquisition were not disclosed. The acquisition expands Accenture’s Cloud First capabilities to drive data-led transformations for clients in the Hispanic South American market, spanning Argentina, Chile, and Colombia. Commenting on the deal, Karthik Narain, global lead for Accenture Cloud First, said: "Almost every day, 2.5 quintillion bytes of data are created by humans and machines across the cloud continuum at the edge, on the internet and in data centers. Cloud is the place where all this data gains accessibility and scale. Cloud’s advanced data & AI tools empower companies to transform data into intellectual capital like never before. By acquiring Ergo, Accenture will bring more resources to help clients gain insights about where to focus their transformation for the most value and how data can support better decision-making through the transformation process.”
https://newsroom.accenture.com/news/accenture-acquires-ergo-to-expand-data-and-ai-capabilities-and-accelerate-data-led-transformation-on-the-cloud.htm
 

Kantar to Acquire Blackwood Seven, Increasing its AI Capability
Copenhagen Denmark - 25th April 2022 - Leading data-driven analytics and brand consulting company, Kantar, has announced it has reached a definitive agreement to acquire Copenhagen, Denmark-based marketing measurement and optimisation company, Blackwood Seven - Its sixth acquisition since Bain Capital took a majority shareholding in December 2019. It’s anticipated the transaction will complete by the end of April. The transaction reinforces Kantar’s position as a market leader in marketing ROI measurement - a market forecast to be valued at $3 billion by 2024 - and accelerates the company’s plans to bring a Unified Marketing Measurement solution to its global client base. The Blackwood Seven team will join Kantar’s Analytics Practice, led by Chris Petranto.  
https://www.kantar.com/company-news/kantar-to-acquire-blackwood-seven

BigCommerce Acquires BundleB2B, Further Expanding its B2B eCommerce Platform
Austin, Texas - 26th April 2022 - BigCommerce, an Open SaaS ecommerce platform for fast-growing and established B2C and B2B brands, has announced the acquisition of BundleB2B, a long time BigCommerce technology partner that provides next-level B2B functionality for BigCommerce merchants. The deal follows the company’s recent acquisition of B2B Ninja, a premier enterprise quoting solution, and furthers BigCommerce’s ability to deliver dynamic powerful ecommerce functionality to B2B merchants at a time when B2B ecommerce continues to boom. Commenting on the transaction, Brent Bellm, CEO of BigCommerce, said: “At BigCommerce, we provide a platform that is easier to use and faster than legacy B2B solutions and more flexible and powerful than other SaaS platforms. This acquisition further cements our commitment to being the best ecommerce option for B2B merchants.”
https://www.bigcommerce.co.uk/press/releases/bigcommerce-further-invests-in-becoming-worlds-most-powerful-b2b-ecommerce-platform-with-acquisition-of-bundleb2b/

Acquisition by Sensata Technologies Enhances Dynapower’s Clean Energy Future
South Burlington, Vermont - 27th April 2022 - Dynapower, a specialist in energy storage and power conversion systems, has announced its sale to Sensata Technologies, an industrial technology company that develops sensors and sensor-based solutions, including controllers, software, and other mission-critical products to create valuable business insights for customers and end users. The transaction is expected to be complete early in the third quarter of 2022. The purchase of Dynapower is a foundational addition to Sensata’s clean energy solutions portfolio and will support Dynapower in its rapid growth in clean energy markets. The acquisition will enable Dynapower to further expand its global footprint, invest in new technologies and markets, and accelerate the scaling of its business. Adam M. Knudsen, Chief Executive Officer at Dynapower commented, “The push toward clean energy is mission-critical. …we are ecstatic about the opportunity to rapidly advance our clean energy impact. Becoming part of the Sensata Technologies family provides access to global resources that will greatly enhance our ability to scale the business, execute projects, and support our customers across the globe.”
https://dynapower.com/dynapower-enhances-its-clean-energy-future-with-acquisition-by-sensata-technologies/

Accenture Announces Intent to Acquire Greenfish, an Independent, Belgium-Based Sustainability Engineering and Advisory Company
Brussels - 20th April 2022 – Accenture has announced its intent to acquire Greenfish, an independent engineering and advisory company specializing in sustainability consultancy services. Financial terms of the transaction are not being disclosed. Peter Lacy, Accenture’s global Sustainability Services lead and Chief Responsibility Officer, added, “The Accenture Sustainability Value Promise is to embed sustainability into everything we do, with everyone we work with, creating both business value and sustainable impact, enabled by technology and human ingenuity. Adding more than 270 deeply skilled professionals in the areas of low-carbon energy transitions, the circular economy and ESG measurement would rapidly accelerate our already-strong leadership both across Europe, and within the critical markets of France, Belgium and the Netherlands.”
https://newsroom.accenture.com/news/accenture-announces-intent-to-acquire-greenfish-an-independent-belgium-based-sustainability-engineering-and-advisory-company.htm

3M Acquires LeanTec Technology, advancing inventory management and digital solutions for auto body shops
St. Paul, Minnesota - 25th April 2022 - 3M has announced that it has acquired the technology assets of LeanTec, a provider of digital inventory management solutions for the automotive aftermarket segment in the United States and Canada. The acquisition demonstrates 3M's commitment to its "connected bodyshop," one of 3M's active digital platforms that integrates data capture and analysis with material product platforms, capitalizing on emerging needs and trends. President at 3M Automotive Aftermarket Division, Dave Gunderson, commented, "Businesses across industries are looking for innovative ways to harness the power of digital transformation – and body shop owners are no exception. This acquisition adds new levels of data integration and insights that will allow body shops greater visibility of their business operations, operational efficiency, and a better customer experience."
https://news.3m.com/2022-04-25-3M-acquires-LeanTec-technology,-advancing-inventory-management-and-digital-solutions-for-auto-body-shops

SailPoint to be Acquired by Thoma Bravo for $6.9 Billion
Austin, Texas - 11th April 2022 - Enterprise identity security company, SailPoint Technologies Holdings, Inc, has announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to be acquired by software investment firm, Thoma Bravo, in an all-cash transaction that values SailPoint at approximately $6.9 billion. Upon completion of the transaction, SailPoint will become a privately held company. Mark McClain, CEO and Founder, SailPoint commented, “Identity security is core to cyber security and businesses have realized that to fuel business growth and success, they must start with identity as the foundation for secure business transformation. We’ve experienced rapid growth and see a tremendous opportunity ahead of us to continue to set the pace in the identity security market as the category leader. This transaction delivers significant immediate cash value to our stockholders and maximizes the value of their shares..[and]…will also allow us to pursue our long-term growth trajectory with greater flexibility and effectiveness to support our customers, expand our markets, and accelerate innovation in identity security...”
https://www.sailpoint.com/press-releases/sailpoint-to-be-acquired-by-thoma-bravo-for-6-9-billion/?gclid=CjwKCAjw9qiTBhBbEiwAp-GE0bl0t3ldYGy-OGEyWI5PDAqGgrTQlSsrCtjhk7hnyfXe10hDBHnF6xoCbasQAvD_BwE

AMD’s $1.9 Billion Acquisition of Pensando Expands Data Center Solutions Capabilities
Santa Clara, California - 4th April 2022 - AMD (NASDAQ: AMD) has announced a definitive agreement to acquire Pensando for approximately $1.9 billion before working capital and other adjustments. Pensando’s distributed services platform includes a high-performance, fully programmable packet processor and comprehensive software stack that accelerate networking, security, storage and other services for cloud, enterprise and edge applications. Dr. Lisa Su, AMD chair and CEO, explained, “To build a leading-edge data center with the best performance, security, flexibility and lowest total cost of ownership requires a wide range of compute engines. All major cloud and OEM customers have adopted EPYC processors to power their data center offerings. Today, with our acquisition of Pensando, we add a leading distributed services platform to our high-performance CPU, GPU, FPGA and adaptive SoC portfolio. The Pensando team brings world-class expertise and a proven track record of innovation at the chip, software and platform level which expands our ability to offer leadership solutions for our cloud, enterprise and edge customers.”
https://www.amd.com/en/press-releases/2022-04-04-amd-expands-data-center-solutions-capabilities-acquisition-pensando

Globant Acquires Low-code Platform GeneXus
New York– April 20, 2022. Globant (NYSE: GLOB), a digitally native technology services company, announced today that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire GeneXus, a renowned company that has developed a leading low-code platform. With this operation, Globant becomes one of the first digital players to invest in a low-code platform as a tool to deliver faster and high-quality digital transformation. GeneXus will also strengthen the offering of Globant X, a dedicated group in charge of productizing the Company’s most transformative tech into scalable platforms. "We are thrilled to add GeneXus to our platform´s portfolio. Low-code platforms can foster business reinventions as they enable organizations to create new applications and solutions faster. This is absolutely critical in this era where technology evolves to meet end-users expectations”, said Martín Migoya, CEO and Co-Founder of Globant.
https://www.globant.com/news/globant-acquires-low-code-platform-genexus-foster-business-reinvention-and-expand-its-product

PTC to Acquire Intland Software for $280 Million
Alpharetta, Georgia - 20th April 2022 - PTC announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Intland Software for approximately $280 million. Intland develops and markets the Codebeamer™ Application Lifecycle Management (ALM) family of software products, including a next-generation, cloud-ready, fully integrated offering. The acquisition is expected to significantly broaden and deepen PTC’s Application Lifecycle Management (ALM) footprint across safety-critical and regulated industries. Subject to the satisfaction of applicable closing conditions, the transaction is expected to close in PTC’s fiscal third quarter. “The addition of Codebeamer will broaden and deepen our ALM portfolio and enable us to further support our customers’ efforts to incorporate sophisticated software systems into their products,” said Jim Heppelmann, President and CEO, PTC. “This acquisition will also complement our strengths in PLM and model-based systems engineering as part of our Digital Thread portfolio strategy.”
https://www.ptc.com/en/news/2022/ptc-to-acquire-intland-software

Motorola Solutions Acquires Calipsa, a Leader in Cloud-native Advanced Video Analytics
Chicago - 19th April 2022 - Motorola Solutions has announced it has acquired Calipsa, Inc., a cloud-native advanced video analytics technology company, based in London, UK. Calipsa’s scalable platform enables businesses to optimize security with AI-powered analytics that verify alarms, enable content-based searches, detect tampering and assess the health of cameras in real time. The solution is relied upon by enterprise and security monitoring customers around the world. “We believe AI, spanning from the edge to the cloud, is driving the future of video security,” said Greg Brown, Chairman and CEO, Motorola Solutions. “With Calipsa, we can rapidly extend our intelligent analytics across any video security solution and support the accelerating trend of enterprises using cloud technologies to enhance safety and security.”
https://www.motorolasolutions.com/newsroom/press-releases/motorola-solutions-acquires-calipsa.html

DigitalBridge to Acquire AMP Capital’s Global Infrastructure Equity Investment Management Business
Boca Raton, Florida - 27th April 2022 - DigitalBridge Group, Inc. has announced that an affiliate, DigitalBridge Investments, LLC, has agreed to acquire AMP Capital’s global infrastructure equity investment management business, part of its Collimate Capital subsidiary, in a transaction valued at $328 million. Explaining the rationale for the deal, Marc Ganzi, Chief Executive Officer of DigitalBridge, commented: “This transaction represents a unique opportunity to extend our leadership in digital investment management. In addition to accelerating and scaling the growth of our platform, we are empowering a team of high-caliber investment professionals who share our commitment to delivering strong long-term returns for investors and have significant experience investing in the value-added mid-market infrastructure segment directly adjacent to our flagship equity business. The Business will deliver immediate financial benefits and growth potential, as we aim to enhance our ability to meet and exceed our near- and medium-term business goals.”
https://www.digitalbridge.com/news/2022-04-27-digitalbridge-to-acquire-amp-capital-global-infrastructure-equity-investment-management-business

Imprivata Acquires SecureLink to Deliver the Only Single-Vendor Platform to Manage and Secure All Enterprise and Third-Party Digital Identities
Waltham, Massachusetts - 11th April 2022 - Imprivata, the digital identity company for mission- and life-critical industries, has announced it has closed its acquisition of SecureLink, the leader in critical access management with elite patient privacy monitoring. The acquisition uniquely addresses the rapidly growing need for a single source to enable and protect all digital identities, spanning enterprise to third parties. “If organizations are serious about securing third party identities and access, they need solutions specifically designed for the challenge,” said Gus Malezis, CEO of Imprivata. “SecureLink uniquely addresses these critical, but often overlooked and vulnerable points of access, and we’re thrilled to offer our customers the leading solution to this challenge.
https://www.imprivata.co.uk/company/press/imprivata-acquires-securelink-deliver-only-single-vendor-platform-manage-and-secure

Datto to be Acquired by Kaseya for $6.2 Billion, with Funding Led by Insight Partners
Miami, Florida and Norwalk, Connecticut - 11th April 2022 - Kaseya, a provider of unified IT management and security software for managed service providers (MSPs) and small to medium-sized businesses (SMBs), and Datto, a global provider of security and cloud-based software solutions purpose-built for MSPs, have announced that they have entered into a definitive agreement for Kaseya to acquire Datto. The all-cash transaction will be funded by an equity consortium led by Insight Partners, with significant investment from TPG and Temasek, and participation from notable investors including Sixth Street. “At Insight Partners, we work with IT infrastructure technology leaders who define and grow their markets through world-class software, data and innovation,” said Michael Triplett, Managing Director at Insight Partners. “We are excited to continue to support Kaseya, an industry-defining IT and security infrastructure management company, as they deepen their support for the industry and enhance the experience of their customers.”
https://www.datto.com/uk/news/datto-to-be-acquired-by-kaseya-for-6-2-billion-with-funding-led-by-insight-partners

LSEG Expands its Global Range of Digital Identity solutions Via Acquisition of Global Data Consortium Inc
5th April 2022 - London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) has announced it has agreed to acquire Global Data Consortium Inc (GDC), a global provider of high-quality identity verification data to support clients with Know Your Customer (KYC) requirements (the Transaction). Founded in 2012, GDC specialises in delivering high-speed electronic digital identity verification. GDC provides global name and address matching capabilities that enable them to accurately source and enhance data from over 300 data sources globally and to deliver high quality identity data in near real-time for over 70 countries. Phil Cotter, Group Head of Customer & Third-Party Risk Solutions, LSEG, said: “This transaction delivers a compelling opportunity to acquire a strategic capability aligned to our vision of becoming a market leading global Digital Identity and Fraud (DI&F) solutions provider…”
https://www.lseg.com/resources/media-centre/press-releases/lseg-expand-its-global-range-digital-identity-solutions-through-acquisition-global-data-consortium-inc

28 April 2022