US-based family timeline website Ancestry.com has been bought by private equity firm Permira in a deal worth $1.6bn.
The firm will be taken private at $32 a share, which delivers a 10% premium on Friday’s closing price on the stock of $29.18.
Ancestry’s flotation raised $100m at $13.50 per share in 2009.
In September 1999, the Utah-based firm previously raised $33.2m in a series B round that saw investment from AOL, Compaq, Pivotal Private Equity, and Amerindo Investment Advisors.
Ancestry has been looking for a buyer for the past four months, during which it has seen its stock price rise 17%. The firm suffered a major blow earlier in the year in the US-version of the popular British show Who do you think you are? which was sponsored by Ancestry was cancelled after three seasons. The show was a major driver for additional subscriptions to the website’s 2m strong user base.
President and chief executive officer of Ancestry, Tim Sullivan, said: “This is a successful outcome for our public stockholders and a great day for Ancestry.com employees and subscribers around the world. 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 adviser and partner as we take the company forward.”
Sullivan and chief financial officer Howard Hochhauser will join the Permira-led buyout group, and are also joined by Spectrum Equity.
Barclays, Credit Suisse Securities, Deutsche Bank, Morgan Stanley and RBC Capital Markets will provide $1.02bn of financing for the deal