Clarivate, a global firm in providing information and insights to accelerate the pace of innovation, has announced a definitive agreement to acquire ProQuest, a global software, data and analytics provider to academic, research and national institutions, from Cambridge Information Group, a family-owned investment firm, and other partners including Atairos, for US$ 5.3 billion, including refinancing of ProQuest debt. The consideration for the acquisition is approximately US$ 4.0 billion in cash and US$ 1.3 billion of equity. The transaction, which is subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals, is expected to close during the third quarter of 2021.
With a mission to accelerate and improve education, research and innovation, ProQuest delivers content and technology solutions to over 25,000 academic, corporate and research organisations in more than 150 countries. The acquisition will establish Clarivate as a premier provider of end-to-end research intelligence solutions and significantly expand its content and data offerings as the addition of ProQuest will materially complement the Clarivate Research Intelligence Cloud.
By bringing together these two customer-focused businesses with a purpose to accelerate innovation at their core, we will create a world-leading software and information provider for research-focused organizations to fuel scientific discovery and innovation into the future.
Jerre Stead, Executive Chairman and CEO, Clarivate said, “Clarivate and ProQuest are highly complementary businesses, each with a rich and storied heritage. We share the goal to accelerate innovation through research and knowledge sharing and together we will enable our customers to solve the world’s most complex challenges with content dating back centuries, and technologies that address the needs of 21st century customers.”
Andy Snyder, Chairman of ProQuest and CEO of Cambridge Information Group said, “I have seen ProQuest evolve to meet our customer’s ever-changing needs over the last several decades and fully understand that the challenges and opportunities they face have never been greater. I am confident that the company will continue to have the resources required to maintain the impressive track record of innovation that our customers count on to create a world leading organisation in research and innovation.”