Tech billionaire, Robert F. Smith of Vista Equity Partners, announced a deal to acquire Apptio—a tech business management software company—for $1.94 billion in cash after just two years as a public company.
Apptio shareholders will receive $38 in cash per share representing a 53 percent premium to the unaffected closing price as of November 9, 2018. The agreement includes a 30-day “go-shop” period, allowing board members and advisors to actively seek alternative acquisition proposals.
“With companies across sectors increasingly dependent upon technology to stay competitive, IT is becoming a critical component for every business on the planet, and Apptio has created the leading platform to help customers manage this new paradigm,” said Brian Sheth, co-founder, and president of Vista in a press release. “We’re thrilled to partner with Sunny and the entire Apptio team on the next chapter in the company’s growth.”
The Seattle-based company—founded in 2007—helps IT tech executives track and optimize their cloud technology investments. The company received a $20 million Series C round in 2010 led by Andreessen Horowitz and Greylock Partners, Madrona Venture Group, and Shasta Ventures.
They most recently raised $125 million in March 2018, according to Crunchbase.
“Vista’s investment and deep expertise in growing world-class SaaS businesses and the flexibility we will have as a private company will help us accelerate our growth while helping us maintain our commitment to creating wildly successful customers,” said Sunny Gupta, co-Founder, and CEO of Apptio.
