Marketing and imaging software producer Adobe agreed to acquire US-based work management software provider Workfront in a $1.5bn deal, giving quantitative trading firm Susquehanna International Group (SIG) an exit.
Founded in 2001 as AtTask, Workfront has built a software platform that allows enterprises to focus workplace activity and collaboration in a single place, allowing marketing employees to create content, automate processes, measure resources and outcomes, manage collaborations and share ideas as well as oversee complex projects.
The company claims to have a customer base of some 3,000 companies and about 1 million users. Workfront’s clients include mass media group Comcast, networking equipment supplier Cisco, telecoms firm BT, financial services provider TSB and guitar manufacturer Fender.
Workfront is part of the broader digital marketing space, which has seen quite a few recorded exits, including acquisitions and IPOs.
Last year the number of exits from corporate-backed companies reached a high of 16. An estimated $834m of total capital was deployed in them.
The latter figure suggests that valuations in this space may not have been too high – but a $1.5bn acquisition may help turn things around.
