Private equity firm Thoma Bravo will acquire SailPoint Technologies for US$6.12 billion in the latest deal that underscores the heightened interest in the security software market.
SailPoint specialises in software related to identity and access management that helps businesses mitigate unwanted user access and reduce the risk of sensitive data leakage.
In buying SailPoint, Thoma Bravo will bolster its strength in the security-focused space, where it already has key investments in firms including Proofpoint, Barracuda Networks and Sophos.
Thoma Bravo, which manages more than US$103 billion in assets, was the majority stakeholder in SailPoint prior to its initial public offering in 2017.
It exited from its position by the end of 2018.
SailPoint shareholders will receive US$65.25 per share in cash, the company said, representing a premium of 31.6 percent as of Friday's close.
Including debt, the deal is valued at about US$6.9 billion.
Sources said the deal could help SailPoint accelerate its transition to a software as a service (SaaS) model without the scrutiny of being a public company, and fund potential transformative acquisitions with the dry powder from Thoma Bravo.
SailPoint's CEO Mark McClain said the go-private deal, expected to close in the second half of this year, would allow the company to pursue long-term growth with greater flexibility and expand their markets on the back of additional capital from the private equity firm.
"We're about 10 percent penetrated in our target market... We have a lot of room to grow in terms of what we add to our portfolio," McClain said.
