EQT acquires SUSE for $2.5 billion
The EQT VIII fund has agreed to acquire SUSE from Micro Focus for an enterprise value of USD 2.535 billion. The transaction is subject to Micro Focus shareholder and customary regulatory approvals.
During the ownership of Micro Focus, SUSE has operated as a semi-independent business under the leadership of Nils Brauckmann, executing on a defined growth charter.
SUSE has also expanded its product portfolio, including solutions for cloud and storage as well as container and application delivery technology.
EQT VIII will support SUSE’s next period of growth and innovation as an independent company. The strategy includes strengthening its position as a open source player, both organically and through add-on acquisitions, leveraging EQT’s long-term experience in the software space.
Priorities will be to further build SUSE’s public cloud business and to expand its product offerings in order to strengthen SUSE as a provider commercializing open source for enterprise customers.
“Today is an exciting day in SUSE’s history. By partnering with EQT, we will become a fully independent business,” said Nils Brauckmann, CEO of SUSE.
“The next chapter in SUSE’s development will continue, and even accelerate, the momentum generated over the last years. Together with EQT, we will benefit both from further investment opportunities and having the continuity of a leadership team focused on securing long-term profitable growth combined with a sharp focus on customer and partner success. The current leadership team has managed SUSE through a period of significant growth and now, with continued investment in technology innovation and go to market capability, will further develop SUSE’s momentum going forward.”
Johannes Reichel, Partner at EQT Partners and Investment Advisor to EQT VIII, adds: “We are excited to partner with SUSE’s management in this attractive growth investment opportunity. We were impressed by the business’ strong performance over the last years as well as by its strong culture and heritage as a pioneer in the open source space. These characteristics correspond well to EQT’s DNA of supporting and building strong and resilient companies, and driving growth. We look forward to entering the next period of growth and innovation together with SUSE.”