M&A Deal Summary

Blackboard Acquires Wimba

On July 7, 2010, Blackboard acquired software company Wimba from First Analysis, Argentum Capital Partners and Spring Lake Equity Partners

Acquisition Highlights
  • This is Blackboard’s 3rd transaction in the Software sector.
  • This is Blackboard’s 6th transaction in the United States.
  • This is Blackboard’s 1st transaction in New York.

M&A Deal Summary
Date 2010-07-07
Target Wimba
Sector Software
Buyer(s) Blackboard
Sellers(s) First Analysis
Argentum Capital Partners
Spring Lake Equity Partners
Deal Type Add-on Acquisition

Target

Wimba

New York City, New York, United States
Wimba is a provider of collaborative software applications to the education industry, including both communication enabling tools and content authoring programs. Clients consist primarily of universities, colleges and post secondary educational providers.

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Buyer(S) 1

Buyer

Blackboard

Reston, Virginia, United States
Category Company
Founded 1997
Sector Software
Employees1,780
DESCRIPTION

Blackboard is a global educational software company that allows thousands of higher education, K-12, professional, corporate and government organizations to extend teaching, learning and campus communication online to millions of students, parents and teachers. Blackboard was founded in 1997 and is based in Reston, Virginia.

DEAL STATS #
Overall 7 of 24
Sector (Software) 3 of 5
Type (Add-on Acquisition) 7 of 22
State (New York) 1 of 1
Country (United States) 6 of 18
Year (2010) 3 of 3
PREVIOUS DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2010-07-07 Elluminate

Calgary, Alberta, Canada

Elluminate offers advanced virtual classroom technology that allows education institutions to hold synchronous live courses over the Web, including audio, video, white board and social learning capabilities Elluminate, headquartered in Calgary, Alberta, was founded in 2000 and employs approximately 140 professional staff serving more than 1,900 K-12 and higher education clients located throughout the U.S. and 80 other countries.

Buy -
FOLLOWING DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2011-01-13 Presidium

Reston, Virginia, United States

Presidium provides managed services to improve the student experience and support academic technology and learning-based enterprises through industry leading processes, technology, and people.

Buy -

Seller(S) 3

SELLER

First Analysis

Chicago, Illinois, United States

Investor Investor Investor Investor Investor

Category Venture Capital Firm
Founded 1981
PE ASSETS 800M USD
Size Middle-Market
Type Sector Agnostic
DESCRIPTION

First Analysis is a financial advisory and investment firm. First Analysis' private equity arm targets investments in growth companies at all stages of development. The Group looks for opportunities based primarily in the US and can commit up to $10 million of equity per transaction. Sectors of particular interest include outsourced services, (business/government services, education, environmental services, healthcare services, marketing services); information technology, (business integration, call centers, healthcare IT, network security, open source, sensor systems, transaction processing); and chemistry enabled businesses (advanced materials, chemicals, healthcare products, polymers, purification). First Analysis was formed in 1981 and is based in Chicago, Illinois.

DEAL STATS #
Overall 39 of 71
Sector (Software) 7 of 11
Type (Add-on Acquisition) 29 of 51
State (New York) 3 of 4
Country (United States) 39 of 70
Year (2010) 2 of 7
PREVIOUS DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2010-02-03 Initiate Systems

Chicago, Illinois, United States

Initiate Systems is a provider of master data management (MDM) software, which enables organizations to strategically leverage and share critical data assets by delivering a comprehensive, secure single view of citizens to government.

Sell -
FOLLOWING DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2010-07-12 Cobalt Group

Seattle, Washington, United States

Cobalt Group, Inc. is a provider of automotive digital marketing technology and services.

Sell $400M
SELLER

Argentum Capital Partners

New York, New York, United States

Investor Investor Investor Investor Investor

Category Growth Capital Firm
Founded 1988
PE ASSETS 400M USD
Size Middle-Market
Type Sector Agnostic
DESCRIPTION

Argentum Capital Partners is a private equity firm focused on investing in small to mid-sized companies with proven business models and the ability to become market leaders. Prospective transaction situations include growth capital financing, management buyouts, platform acquisitions, and recapitalization. The firm typically takes minority positions, except in the case of management buyouts. Industry sectors of interest include business services, healthcare, and technology. Argentum generally prefers opportunities located in the Eastern US, but will consider companies across the US. Argentum Capital Partners was formed in 1988 and is based in New York City.

DEAL STATS #
Overall 22 of 44
Sector (Software) 5 of 8
Type (Add-on Acquisition) 17 of 31
State (New York) 2 of 4
Country (United States) 21 of 42
Year (2010) 1 of 2
PREVIOUS DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2010-06-03 Aventri

Norwalk, Connecticut, United States

Aventri is a provider of cloud-based analytics and data-driven end-to-end event management and venue sourcing solutions. Open-source platform delivers innovative technology solutions to streamline the event process, providing real-time data and analytics on event performance, customer engagement, and increasing measurable event ROI. Aventri was formed in 2008 and is based in Norwalk, Connecticut.

Buy -
FOLLOWING DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2010-12-28 ReSearch Pharmaceutical Services

Fort Washington, Pennsylvania, United States

ReSearch Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. is a provider of integrated global clinical development solutions to the bio-pharmaceutical industry based on its comprehensive therapeutic expertise, robust clinical operations infrastructure, and highly trained and experienced employee base.

Sell $227M
SELLER

Spring Lake Equity Partners

Investor Investor Investor Investor Investor

Category Venture Capital Firm
Founded 2013
Size Middle-Market
Type Sector Agnostic
DESCRIPTION

Spring Lake Equity Partners is a private venture capital firm focused on later-stage technology company investments. The Firm looks to invest $7 to $15 million in growth-oriented companies with up to $100 million in revenue. Specific areas of interest include software, digital media, mobile, data center infrastructure, healthcare IT, and business/financial services. Spring Lake Equity was formed in 2013 after spinning-off from Tudor Investment Corporation. The Firm is based in Boston, Massachusetts.

DEAL STATS #
Overall 24 of 39
Sector (Software) 6 of 10
Type (Add-on Acquisition) 13 of 23
State (New York) 2 of 3
Country (United States) 24 of 38
Year (2010) 3 of 6
PREVIOUS DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2010-06-23 Thorne Research

Sandpoint, Idaho, United States

Thorne Research, Inc. is a developer and manufacturer of high-quality, premium supplements sold primarily through medical professionals and also directly to consumers. Thorne Research is based in Sandpoint, Idaho.

Buy -
FOLLOWING DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2010-08-16 Axolotl

San Jose, California, United States

Axolotl is a developer of health information exchange solutions for states, communities, hospitals and health systems. The Company is based in San Jose, California.

Sell -
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