Salesforce is awaiting approval from regulators to execute a fully paid cash deal worth $1.9 Billion to acquire the Own Backup and Data Protection startup.
Salesforce made an announcement on Thursday about the final stage of acquiring the Own Company, a new-age startup dealing in backup and data protection solutions. The startup specializes in tools for backing up data in and for cloud-based applications. Salesforce seems to prioritize acquisition at a high value, offering $1.9 billion in upfront cash to close the deal.
The only thing holding it back from completing the transaction is a nod of approval from the concerned authorities regulating the acquisition. If things go well according to Salesforce’s roadmap, the acquisition will be completed by January 2025.
Own belongs to one of the hottest startup categories in a lucrative industry that is expected to grow at 29.6% CAGR by 2030. The startup runs on a simple and powerful mission statement, “The Own Data Platform makes owning your SaaS data simple. It empowers you to ensure the availability, compliance, and security of mission-critical data and unlocks new ways to use that data to transform your business.”
Back in 2021, Own was valued at $3.35 billion, during which Salesforce Ventures invested a big chunk into the startup. Salesforce Ventures has been facing criticism from its key stakeholders due to lower-than-expected returns on some of its recent technological acquisitions like MuleSoft and Slack.
In 2022, Salesforce co-founder and CEO Marc Benioff announced dissolving a committee that looked after potential merger and acquisition opportunities. With the recent deal, Salesforce will be reclaiming its name in the league of the biggest acquisition deals conducted in the big tech industry.
Own has been experiencing a sizeable downgrade in its market value after the demand for cloud software declined post-COVID as people began coming back to offices. Some of the best CRM software witnessed similar declines from 2021 onwards but have stabilized by adding more layers of services and digital assets to their offerings.
