Ping Identity Drops IPO Plans to Get Acquired by Vista Equity Partners, which had Bought Marketo a Day Earlier

Ping Identity, a leading provider of Identity Defined Security, has been acquired by Vista Equity Partners, a major private equity firm that invest on technology, software and data-driven businesses. The financial terms of the deal, which was signed the very next day of Marketo’s acquisition by Vista, have not been disclosed by either of the companies. What is noteworthy is that Ping Identity dropped its plans to go public, and preferred the deal to the IPO. The decision makes sense as the deal brings opportunities for innovation and growth for Ping Identity through strategic acquisitions as well as investments in its Identity-as-a-Service (IDaaS) capabilities. The deal is slated to be closed in Q3 this year.

Robert Smith, Chief Executive Officer, Chairman and Founder, Vista Equity Partners, said in a release, “Vista recognizes the power of Ping's platform and the strength of Ping's business model, and we’re looking forward to working with Andre to support Ping’s growth in the dynamic and strategic field of identity management.” Andre Durand, Chief Executive Officer, Ping Identity, added, “With Vista, we can now accelerate our vision of creating a borderless world secured through identity. The Ping team is excited to begin this next phase for Ping Identity and to broaden its reach into new markets.”

Vista has acquired Ping Identity at a time when the latter’s annual recurring revenue is projected to cross $100 million following 40% increase over last year. Ping Identity, which provides secure access to digital enterprises, has a clientele of more than 50 of Fortune 100 companies. The company offers service for more than 1,500 of the most-demanding businesses in the world.

Ping Identity opens APAC data center

Earlier this quarter, Ping Identity opened a new regional data center in Sydney, Australia for APAC. Hosted by Amazon Web Services, the new data center is intended to cater to the customers’ demands better, and enable them to leverage PingOne Cloud better for their businesses.

Enhancement and API launch

Earlier this year, Ping Identity released two enhancements – elastic scalability and contextual FMA – for Ping Federate. In addition to the upgrades, the company also released an API that enables enterprises to integrate MFA directly into their mobile app and web authentication flow.