M&A Deal Summary

BlackBerry Acquires Cylance

On November 16, 2018, BlackBerry acquired information technology company Cylance from The Blackstone Group for 1.4B USD

Acquisition Highlights
  • This is BlackBerry’s 5th transaction in the Information Technology sector.
  • This is BlackBerry’s largest (disclosed) transaction.
  • This is BlackBerry’s 11th transaction in the United States.
  • This is BlackBerry’s 8th transaction in California.
Investment Fate
  • Cylance was divested to a consortium of strategic buyers in 2024 for 160M USD.

M&A Deal Summary
Date 2018-11-16
Target Cylance
Sector Information Technology
Buyer(s) BlackBerry
Sellers(s) The Blackstone Group
Deal Type Add-on Acquisition
Deal Value 1.4B USD
Advisor(s) Morgan Stanley (Financial)
Jones Day (Legal)

Target

Cylance

Irvine, California, United States
Cylance develops artificial intelligence to deliver prevention-first, predictive security products and smart, simple, secure solutions that change how organizations approach endpoint security. Cylance provides full spectrum predictive threat prevention and visibility across the enterprise to combat the most notorious and advanced cybersecurity attacks. Cylance was founded in 2012 and is based in Irvine, California.

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Buyer(S) 1

Buyer

BlackBerry

Waterloo, Ontario, Canada
Category Company
Founded 1984
Sector Technology Hardware
Employees2,647
Revenue 853M USD (2024)
DESCRIPTION

BlackBerry a global leader in wireless innovation, revolutionized the mobile industry with the introduction of the BlackBerry in 1999. Since then, BlackBerry products and services have continued to change the way millions of people around the world stay connected. BlackBerry was founded in 1984 and is based in Waterloo, Ontario.

DEAL STATS #
Overall 25 of 25
Sector (Information Technology) 5 of 5
Type (Add-on Acquisition) 24 of 24
State (California) 8 of 8
Country (United States) 11 of 11
Year (2018) 1 of 1
Size (of disclosed) 1 of 8
PREVIOUS DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2016-02-24 Encription

Worcestershire, United Kingdom

Encription Ltd. is a cyber security consultancy company, provides penetration testing, digital forensics and IT security training services.

Buy -
FOLLOWING DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2024-12-16 Cylance

Irvine, California, United States

Cylance develops artificial intelligence to deliver prevention-first, predictive security products and smart, simple, secure solutions that change how organizations approach endpoint security. Cylance provides full spectrum predictive threat prevention and visibility across the enterprise to combat the most notorious and advanced cybersecurity attacks. Cylance was founded in 2012 and is based in Irvine, California.

Sell $160M

Seller(S) 1

SELLER

The Blackstone Group

New York, New York, United States

Investor Investor Investor Investor Investor

Category Private Equity Firm
Founded 1987
PE ASSETS 131.0B USD
Size Mega
Type Sector Agnostic
DESCRIPTION

The Blackstone Group is a global alternative investment management firm. The Firm's investment activities span real estate, secondary investments, hedge funds, credit, infrastructure, and private equity. Blackstone's private equity group targets opportunities globally including buyout acquisitions of established companies, development projects, growth equity financings, and industry consolidations. Sectors of interest include automotive, healthcare, chemicals, industrial, commercial property, lodging, communications, media/publishing, consumer & retail, packaging, consumer products, pharmaceuticals, energy, technology, entertainment, telecommunications, financial services, theme parks, food & beverage, and transportation. Blackstone's private equity real estate group looks for opportunities across North/South America, Asia, Australia/New Zealand, and Europe. The real estate group will consider both equity and debt investments. Areas of interest include healthcare, hotel, industrial, office, residential, and retail. The Blackstone Group was formed in 1987 and is based in New York, New York.

DEAL STATS #
Overall 125 of 174
Sector (Information Technology) 6 of 11
Type (Add-on Acquisition) 46 of 67
State (California) 6 of 10
Country (United States) 75 of 105
Year (2018) 10 of 13
Size (of disclosed) 32 of 57
PREVIOUS DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2018-11-15 Ixom

Victoria, Australia

Ixom is a global chemicals business focused on providing water treatment and chemical distribution services in Australia and New Zealand, with a growing presence in North and South America and Asia.

Sell AU$777M
FOLLOWING DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2018-11-19 DJO Global

Vista, California, United States

DJO Global, Inc. is a manufacturer of rehabilitation and regeneration products for the non-operative orthopedic and spine markets. DJO Global offers a range of products includes rigid knee braces and soft goods, cold therapy, vascular systems, and bone stimulation and regeneration products. DJO Global, Inc. was founded in 1978 and is based in Vista, California.

Sell $3.2B
Mergr

Product

Company

Legal