EngageSmart to be taken over by Vista in $4bn deal

Payments software vendor EngageSmart said on Monday that it has agreed to be taken over by private equity firm Vista in a $4bn cash deal.

Under the terms of the transaction, EngageSmart shareholders will receive $23.00 per share, which is a premium of around 23% to the unaffected closing price on 4 October.

The company’s chief executive, Bob Bennett, said: "We have built an amazing business by putting our customers at the centre of everything we do.

"We continue to see attractive growth and customer retention in our vertically tailored SaaS solutions - a testament to the strength of our business model and our leading products. We believe the partnership with Vista and General Atlantic will enable us to continue investing in innovation and people to drive growth. We look forward to continuing to serve our customers and support our employees who are relentless in their pursuit of customer satisfaction."

The deal is expected to close in the first quarter of 2024.

At 1330 BST, the shares were up 12% in pre-market trade at $22.62.