SoftwareOne still 'in discussions' with Bain after rejected bids

News broke last week that the PE firm’s bid of almost CHF 3bn is failing to gain support

SoftwareOne still 'in discussions' with Bain after rejected bids

SoftwareOne said it continues to be in discussions with Bain Capital following several rejected acquisition offers from the private equity firm and fresh rumours the deal was struggling to gain support from the board.

The statement comes in response to media reports that claimed the proposed takeover with Bain was "stalling".

"The board remains focused on driving shareholder value and acting in the best interest of the company and all stakeholders," SoftwareOne's statement said.

"The board expects to conclude discussions and provide an update on the outcome of the strategic review to shareholders by the end of the month."

A report from Bloomberg said Bain Capital's pursuit of SoftwareOne had stalled after an offer of almost CHF 3bn (£2.7bn) received a "lukewarm response from the software firm's board".

According to the report, SoftwareOne signalled to the PE firm that the latest offer wouldn't be enough to win support from its directors.

At least one large SoftwareOne shareholder is said to have expressed frustration over the situation and may now take further action to increase pressure on the company's senior management to pursue a deal, Bloomberg said.

In the summer, SoftwareOne had already rejected multiple offers from Bain.

In June 2023, it refused a CHF 2.7bn (£2.5bn) deal believing the offer did not match the company's actual value.

Later in July, the private equity firm raised its offer to CHF 3.2bn (£2.8bn), but was yet again denied.

Since then, the solutions provider's share price has been falling - recently quoted at CHF 16.21.

In 2024, SoftwareOne has already landed its first acquisition - Spanish SAP and cloud services provider Novis Euforia - which will add 35 employees to the reseller's roster.

In its latest financial results it reported an 8.4 per cent year-on-year revenue growth in constant currency for Q3 2023, reaching CHF233.4m (£210.8m) quoting the success of its operational excellence programme as one of the key drivers for growth.

The programme delivered cost savings of CHF 27m by the end of September 2023, outstripping the full-year target of CHF 15m.