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Ancestry.com Sold To Private Equity Firm For $1.6 Billion

Online genealogy site Ancestry.com has agreed to be purchased by European private equity firm Permira for $1.6 billion ($32.00 per share). Ancestry.com President and CEO Tim Sullivan and CFO and COO H...
Ancestry.com Sold To Private Equity Firm For $1.6 Billion
Written by Chris Crum
  • Online genealogy site Ancestry.com has agreed to be purchased by European private equity firm Permira for $1.6 billion ($32.00 per share).

    Ancestry.com President and CEO Tim Sullivan and CFO and COO Howard Hochhauser will maintain a majority of their equity stakes in the company. Spectrum Equity will also remain an investor.

    “This is a successful outcome for our public stockholders, and a great day for Ancestry.com employees and subscribers around the world,” said Sullivan. “We’re excited that Permira shares our commitment to keep investing in our technology and product experience to make family history easy and accessible for more and more families around the world. Their strong investment track record in the technology and Internet sectors makes them a terrific advisor and partner as we take the company forward.”

    Brian Ruder, Partner and Head of Permira’s Menlo Park office added, “With its pioneering technology and market leading position, Ancestry.com is an exciting investment opportunity for the Permira funds. We are thrilled to be able to back the company as it continues to develop new and innovative content, and expand in both its core markets and into new geographies. We look forward to bringing Permira’s technology and media experience to bear in supporting Tim, Howard and the rest of the talented team at Ancestry.com and its mission of helping everyone discover, preserve and share their family history.”

    Charles Boesenberg, Chairman of the Board of Ancestry.com, said, “Our board conducted a thorough sale process, and we are pleased to be able to offer our stockholders this premium transaction.”

    Speaking of stockholders, Ancestry.com shares, listed on the NASDAQ, are up 7.98% in the news, as of the time of this writing. The company will release its Q3 financial results on Wednesday.

    Ancestry.com has over 10 billion digitized, indexed records and over 2 million subscribers.

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