(Bloomberg) — KKR & Co. has agreed to to acquire cybersecurity company Barracuda Networks Inc. from Thoma Bravo.
The transaction values Barracuda at about $3.8 billion, including debt, according to people familiar with the matter, asking not to be identified because the terms are private.
“With the support of KKR, we will continue to invest in growth and foster a culture that gives our team the resources and inspiration to continue to create and deliver the next generation of leading cybersecurity solutions,” Barracuda Chief Executive Officer Hatem Naguib said in a statement announcing the deal Tuesday, which confirmed a Bloomberg News report.
Private equity firms have been gravitating toward cybersecurity assets for years, attracted by the steady cash flows and market opportunity as companies around the world want to protect themselves from hackers.
Thoma Bravo took Campbell, California-based Barracuda private in 2018 for about $1.6 billion, according to a statement at the time. It helps customers guard their networks and employee emails, its website showed.
Under Thoma Bravo, the company expanded its products and executed a number of acquisitions, according to Tuesday’s statement. KKR will support its expansion in areas including managed detection and response. Barracuda will also implement KKR’s employee-ownership program, which lets employees share in the ownership of their companies, the statement showed.
One of the busiest cybersecurity investors has been Thoma Bravo. Earlier this week, the private equity firm agreed to buy Sailpoint Technologies Holdings Inc., a company it previously owned, for $6.9 billion.
KKR also owns some cybersecurity companies such as Optiv Security, according to its website.
JPMorgan Chase & Co. advised Thoma Bravo and Barracuda on the deal. Guggenheim Partners, DBO Partners and Barclays Plc advised KKR.
(Updates with details from statement starting in first paragraph)
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