
Zendesk Shareholders Approve $10.2B Takeover by Investor Consortium
Zendesk Inc shareholders have approved a $10.2bn planned takeover offer of the software maker by a group of private equity firms led by Hellman & Friedman and Permira, the company said.
After persistent pressure from activist investor Jana Partners and a previous agreement in June, Zendesk shareholders will be paid $77.50 per share in cash by the consortium. The firm said the deal would close in the fourth quarter of the year.
Zendesk’s proxy firm, Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS), backed the deal and warned that if Zendesk shareholders did not agree there would be a significant risk involved.
Meanwhile, Light Street Capital Management, which manages funds that own more than 2% of Zendesk, said in August it would vote against the merger, stressing the importance of Zendesk remaining a standalone public company and finding a new CEO for the San Francisco firm founded in 2007.