Blackstone (NYSE:BX) today announced that a fund it manages on behalf of
its private equity investors has entered into a definitive agreement to
acquire a majority stake in Accuvant Inc., a leader in information
security solutions and services. Accuvant management and existing
shareholder Sverica International LLC will invest alongside Blackstone
in the transaction. Blackstone’s investment will enable Accuvant to
accelerate its pace of expansion and enable the management team to
deploy additional capital and resources for a broader roll-out of its
product- and service-based solution offerings.
This investment leverages Blackstone’s extensive technology experience
and capabilities, and also significantly broadens its presence in the
information-security sector. The increased prevalence and complexity of
cyber-attacks has made information security a Board-level issue at
corporations across the world. Blackstone has committed significant time
and resources to evaluating the industry landscape and key vendors in
the market.
Accuvant is one of several tech investments that Blackstone's private
equity funds have made in the technology sector over the last twelve
months. Other recent investments include: Pactera Technology
International Ltd, China's largest IT outsourcing company; and Kronos, a
leading global provider of workforce management software and services.
Separately, Blackstone has made small minority investments in emerging
security companies, including Carbon Black / Bit9, iSIGHT Partners,
Secure Mentem, WatchDox, and Cylance.
Accuvant provides its enterprise customers with security software and
hardware manufactured by its best-in-class technology partners and, via
its security services segments, offers implementation, consulting, 24x7
monitoring / managed services, and world-class post-intrusion detection
and remediation services. Accuvant’s experienced account managers and
engineers differentiate themselves with their high-touch customer
service model, holistic view of their client's security needs and deeply
specialized technical knowledge, which together make Accuvant a trusted
advisor to its clients on their information security needs.
Dave Johnson, Senior Managing Director in Blackstone’s Private Equity
Group, said, “With this investment, we are excited to build upon
Blackstone’s growing information security expertise as the sector
becomes increasingly relevant across industries. Our investment will
provide Accuvant’s experienced team with necessary resources as it
continues to establish a reputation for excellence in the information
risk and security space.”
Jay Leek, Senior Vice President in Blackstone’s Innovations and
Infrastructure group and Chief Information Security Officer, said, “We
are very excited about the strategic value that Accuvant brings to
Blackstone and our portfolio companies. This partnership will provide us
greater access to their world class security capabilities and talent as
we continue to manage the ever increasing threat of information security
breaches.”
“We are looking forward to being part of the Blackstone family,” said
Dan Burns, Accuvant co-founder and chief executive officer. “Security
has transcended everyone and everything – from people to companies to
nations. Accuvant has already helped thousands of organizations protect
themselves and their customers. But, there’s so much more we can do.
This partnership will enable us to accelerate our pace of innovation and
expansion, and allow us to deliver new services and solutions that meet
the constantly evolving needs of the global and critically important
market.”
The transaction is expected to close in April pending relevant
regulatory approvals. Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP and Blackstone
Advisory Partners L.P. served as advisors to Blackstone.
About Accuvant
Accuvant is a leading provider of information security services and
solutions serving enterprise-class organizations across North America.
The company offers a full suite of service capabilities to help
businesses, governments and educational institutions define their
security strategies, identify and remediate threats and risks, select
and deploy the right technology and achieve operational readiness to
protect their organizations from malicious attack. Headquartered in
Denver, Colorado, Accuvant has offices across the United States and
Canada. Founded in 2002, Accuvant has been named to the Inc. 500|5000
list of fastest growing companies for the last seven consecutive years.
For more information about Accuvant, visit Accuvant’s website at www.accuvant.com.
About Blackstone
Blackstone is one of the world’s leading investment and advisory firms.
We seek to create positive economic impact and long-term value for our
investors, the companies we invest in, the companies we advise and the
broader global economy. We do this through the commitment of our
extraordinary people and flexible capital. Our asset management
businesses include investment vehicles focused on private equity, real
estate, hedge fund solutions, non-investment grade credit, secondary
funds, and multi asset class exposures falling outside of other funds’
mandates. Blackstone also provides various financial advisory services,
including financial and strategic advisory, restructuring and
reorganization advisory and fund placement services. Further information
is available at www.blackstone.com.
Follow Blackstone on Twitter @Blackstone.
Copyright Business Wire 2014