Vista Equity Partners has signed an agreement to acquire GovDelivery, a cloud-based digital communication platform for government, from Actua Corp. which acquired GovDelivery in 2009. The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2016.
GovDelivery is a digital marketing platform used by public sector organizations to promote usage of services, enhance public awareness, and increase the contributions and involvement of citizens. The company’s products are used by more than 1,800 organizations to reach over 120 million citizens. GovDelivery was founded by its CEO Scott Burns in 2000 and is headquartered in St. Paul (www.govdelivery.com).
GovDelivery launched major product upgrades in 2016 to support advanced digital marketing, FedRAMP (Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program) security compliance, and learning-enabled content. The company also added interactive text capabilities and an open source data management and open data platform through acquisitions. Over half of GovDelivery’s workforce has joined the company since January 2015.
“What sets GovDelivery apart is its success helping governments reach more people through its platform,” said Patrick Severson, board member and Principal at Vista Equity Partners. “We see effective communications as an increasingly strategic function and were impressed by the extraordinary value and unrivaled security that GovDelivery brings to its clients in this fast growing area.”
Vista Equity Partners makes equity investments in software, data and technology-enabled companies. The firm was founded in 2000 and has over 50 investment professionals operating out of San Francisco, Chicago and Austin (www.vistaequitypartners.com).
“Vista is a world class partner for our next phase of growth,” said Mr. Burns. “This $153 million investment validates our strategy and is the largest single investment in a cloud-based government technology company to date.”
Actua (NASDAQ:ACTA), the seller of GovDelivery, is a multi-vertical cloud computing company. Actua, based near Philadelphia in Radnor, PA, was formerly known as ICG Group and changed its name to Actua in September 2014 (www.actua.com).
Stephens (www.stephens.com) served as the financial advisor to GovDelivery on the transaction.
© 2016 Private Equity Professional • 9-27-16
