Bottomline Technologies to Go Private Following $2.6B Sale

Payments and invoice management platform Bottomline Technologies will become a privately held company following a planned $2.6 billion acquisition by software investment firm Thoma Bravo.

The company announced the acquisition Friday (Dec. 17), saying the all-cash transaction would likely close in the second quarter of 2022. Upon completion, the New Hampshire-based company will no longer be traded on public markets.

“This transaction is an exciting next chapter for our company, our customers and our employees, and is a testament to the hard work and dedication of the entire Bottomline team,” said Rob Eberle, CEO of Bottomline. “We have been executing against our strategy of establishing competitive advantage with a product set designed to transform business payments for companies and financial institutions around the world.”

Eberle said working with Thoma Bravo would allow Bottomline to invest in continued innovation and give the company access to Thoma Bravo’s operating capabilities, capital resources and industry expertise.

Holden Spaht, a managing partner at Thoma Bravo, said his firm sees “tremendous opportunity for Bottomline to continue capitalizing on its unique position, particularly in the large and growing B2B payments market, and successfully delivering its diverse portfolio of products that intelligently digitize the way businesses pay and get paid.”

Read more: Bottomline Technologies Exploring Possible Sale

PYMNTS reported last week that Bottomline was looking at a potential sale, having recently been courted by private equity firms.

In October, the company named three new board members as part of an agreement with shareholders Clearfield Capital Management and Sachem Head Capital Management, and created a committee to evaluate and make recommendations on its strategy and position in the market.

Under the terms of the acquisition agreement, Bottomline shareholders will get $57.00 per share in cash, which represents a premium of about 42% to Bottomline’s unaffected closing stock price on October 19, 2021, the day that committee was formed.