Squarespace, the renowned website builder and hosting company, has entered a new phase in its corporate journey with a $6.9 billion acquisition by UK-based private equity firm Permira, transitioning from a publicly traded entity back to a private company.
Announced on Monday, May 13th, this all-cash transaction will offer Squarespace stockholders $44 per share, marking a 29% premium over the 90-day volume-weighted average trading price.
Founded in 2003 and public since 2021, Squarespace has grown to become a significant player in the website hosting market, powering over 3.3 million websites. This positions it as the second most popular website host in the U.S., just behind Shopify, according to data from BuiltWith. Unlike WordPress, many Squarespace sites are hosted directly by the company, reflecting its integrated service model.
The trend of tech companies transitioning from public to private structures is becoming more notable. Recent years have seen a flurry of such transitions, with prominent acquisitions including Twitter by Elon Musk, now rebranded as X, and Zendesk by Permira and Hellman & Friedman for $10.2 billion. Additionally, in the past two months alone, private equity firm Thoma Bravo has taken cybersecurity company Darktrace private in a $5 billion deal and acquired event management software company Everbridge for $1.8 billion, also transitioning it to private ownership.
This strategic move by Permira suggests a continued confidence in Squarespace’s business model and leadership, as it retains founder and CEO Anthony Casalena. This indicates that, despite the change in ownership structure, Squarespace’s operational and service ethos is expected to remain consistent, ensuring stability for users relying on its platform for website creation and hosting.
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Featured Image courtesy of MARK LENNIHAN/ASSOCIATED PRESS