An investor group led by Permira Advisers Ltd., Hellman & Friedman LLC, Abu Dhabi Investment Authority and GIC Pte. Ltd. completed the acquisition of Zendesk, Inc. from Capital World Investors, The Vanguard Group, Inc., BlackRock, Inc., Light Street Capital Management, LLC and others
The completion of the transaction is subject to the affirmative vote of holders of a majority of the outstanding shares of Zendesk Common Stock, the expiration or termination of the applicable waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976, as amended, and the receipt of certain other regulatory approvals, including from the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States. The consummation of the transaction is not subject to any financing condition. The Board of Directors of Zendesk has unanimously approved the transaction and have resolved to recommend that Zendesk's stockholders approve the adoption of the Merger Agreement. The Board of Directors of the investor group have also approved the transaction. On August 1, 2022, the waiting period under the antitrust review process in the U.S. expired. The parties filed paperwork with the European Commission with respect to the transaction on August 17, 2022. The EU merger regulator has set September 21, 2022 as a provisional deadline for a ruling on the deal. As of August 29, 2022, Light Street Capital Management announced that it will vote against the proposed deal. A special meeting of Zendesk stockholders to vote on the transaction will be held on September 19, 2022. On September 19, 2022, Zendesk shareholder approved the transaction. On November 17, 2022, Zendesk received written notice from Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) approving the transaction. All required regulatory approvals to complete the merger have now been received. The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2022. As of November 18, 2022, the transaction is expected to close on November 22, 2022.
Qatalyst Partners and Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC acted as financial advisors and fairness opinion providers to Zendesk. Steven A. Rosenblum, Ronald C. Chen and Sabastian V. Niles of Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz acted as the legal advisors to Zendesk. Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC acted as the financial advisor to the investor group. Brian Mangino and Amber Banks of Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson LLP acted as the legal advisors to the investor group and to Permira. Atif Azher, Brian Steinhardt, Matthew Farrell, William B. Brentani, Jonathan Lindabury, Robert Guo and Russell Light of Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP acted as the financing counsel to the investor group in obtaining the debt commitments for financing of the transaction. Kirkland & Ellis LLP acted as the legal advisor to Hellman & Friedman. Michael Benjamin, Nicole Fanjul, Paul Bonewitz, Peter Sluka, Josh Holt, Jason Ewart, Conray Tseng, Noah Weiss, Bryce Kaufman Pamela Kellet, Stelios Saffos, Peter Sluka, Michael Saliba, Jocelyn Noll, Bora Bozkurt, Bradd Williamson, Michael Benjamin, Matthew Salerno, Joshua Marnitz, Larry Safran, Linda Inscoe, Joe Farrell and Robert Brown of Latham Advises on Financings in Zendesk. Computershare acted as transfer agent to Zendesk. MacKenzie Partners, Inc. acted as the information agent to Zendesk. Zendesk estimates that it will pay MacKenzie a fee of approximately $50,000, plus reimbursement for certain out-of-pocket fees and expenses. Sullivan & Cromwell LLP represents Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC as financial adviser to Zendesk, Inc. (U.S.).Dechert LLP acted as legal advisor to GIC Private Limited.
An investor group led by Permira Advisers Ltd., Hellman & Friedman LLC, Abu Dhabi Investment Authority and GIC Pte. Ltd. completed the acquisition of Zendesk, Inc. (NYSE:ZEN) from Capital World Investors, The Vanguard Group, Inc., BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK), Light Street Capital Management, LLC and others on November 22, 2022. . In connection with the completion of the transaction, Zendesk common stock ceased trading and will be delisted from the New York Stock Exchange