Clearlake and Francisco Partners Complete Acquisition of Black Duck Software, Formerly Known as Synopsys Software Integrity Group

The standalone application security company continues its mission to help organizations build trust in their software to support innovation and business transformation

SANTA MONICA, Calif. and SAN FRANCISCO, Oct. 1, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Clearlake Capital Group (“Clearlake“) and Francisco Partners announced today that they have completed their acquisition of the Synopsys Software Integrity Group, establishing the newly independent application security company as Black Duck Software, Inc. (“Black Duck”). The transaction with Synopsys, Inc. (Nasdaq: SNPS), which was first announced on May 6, 2024, is valued at up to $2.1 billion, including up to $475 million in cash payable upon Clearlake and Francisco Partners achieving a specified rate of return in connection with one or more liquidity transactions.

The new Black Duck brand is inspired by its flagship software supply chain solution, Black Duck SCA, which has helped thousands of organizations around the world adopt open-source technology safely and securely for nearly 20 years.

As an independent company, Black Duck provides all the application security solutions previously available from the Synopsys Software Integrity Group. Black Duck’s mission is to help organizations build trust in their software so they can innovate and transform their businesses with new, emerging technologies like AI.

Veteran security leader Jason Schmitt, who joined Synopsys in 2020 as the general manager of the Software Integrity Group, will continue to lead Black Duck as its Chief Executive Officer. Black Duck also announced that it has appointed Joy Meier as Chief Human Resources Officer and General Counsel. The remainder of the existing Software Integrity Group’s leadership team will continue in their roles at Black Duck.

“We are excited to continue our partnership with Jason and the entire Black Duck management team as the company begins the next step of its journey as a standalone business,” said Brian Decker and Evan Daar, Partners at Francisco Partners. “Alongside Clearlake, we are excited to help extend the company’s leadership in the industry as a comprehensive next-generation application security testing provider. This next stage of growth will better serve its customers, while protecting their mission-critical software applications, and we are looking forward to bringing additional resources and expertise to keep accelerating its growth.”

“Black Duck provides critical technology that supports and enables enterprise-scale software development teams to protect their applications against rapidly evolving cybersecurity threats,” said Prashant Mehrotra, Partner, and Sean Courtney, Principal, at Clearlake. “We are committed to supporting Black Duck as it continues to innovate and address the increasing demands for cutting-edge application security solutions with the help of our O.P.S.^® value creation framework.”

As a recognized market leader, Black Duck provides a comprehensive portfolio of application security products and services. As a newly independent company with a singular vision and focus, Black Duck is better positioned to deliver the leading solutions the market has come to expect.

“We’re excited to complete our transition from Synopsys to Black Duck with the support of Clearlake and Francisco Partners,” said Jason Schmitt, CEO of Black Duck. “I am proud of what we have accomplished to get here, and I am optimistic about our future as an independent company. With a comprehensive portfolio of application security solutions underpinned by differentiated technology and a talented team of experts, we enter the next phase of our journey with momentum and a renewed focus to help our customers build trust in their software.”

Black Duck’s portfolio, which has been named a Leader in the Gartner® Magic Quadrant™ for Application Security Testing¹ for seven consecutive years, includes:

Polaris™ SaaS Platform
Coverity® Static Analysis
Black Duck Software Composition Analysis
WhiteHat™ Continuous Dynamic Analysis
Seeker® Interactive Analysis
Defensics® Protocol Fuzzing
Security Testing, Consulting, and Audit Services

For more information, read Jason Schmitt’s blog post and visit Black Duck’s new website: www.blackduck.com.

Evercore, Deutsche Bank, and Barclays acted as financial advisors to Clearlake and Francisco Partners. Sidley Austin acted as lead legal advisor to Clearlake and Francisco Partners. Simpson Thacher & Bartlett also advised Francisco Partners. J.P. Morgan served as financial advisor and Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton served as legal advisor to Synopsys.

About Clearlake Capital

Clearlake Capital Group, L.P. is an investment firm founded in 2006 operating integrated businesses across private equity, credit and other related strategies. With a sector-focused approach, the firm seeks to partner with experienced management teams by providing patient, long-term capital to dynamic businesses that can benefit from Clearlake’s operational improvement approach, O.P.S.^® The firm’s core target sectors are technology, industrials, and consumer. Clearlake currently has over $85 billion of assets under management and its senior investment principals have led or co-led over 400 investments. The firm is headquartered in Santa Monica, CA with affiliates in Dallas, TX, London, UK, Dublin, Ireland Singapore and Abu Dhabi, UAE. More information is available at www.clearlake.com.

About Francisco Partners

Francisco Partners is a leading global investment firm that specializes in partnering with technology and technology-enabled businesses. Since its launch 25 years ago, Francisco Partners has invested in more than 450 technology companies, making it one of the most active and longstanding investors in the technology industry. With approximately $45 billion in capital raised, the firm invests in opportunities where its deep sectoral knowledge and operational expertise can help companies realize their full potential. For more information on Francisco Partners, please visit www.franciscopartners.com.

About Black Duck Software, Inc.
Black Duck Software, formerly known as the Synopsys Software Integrity Group, offers a comprehensive portfolio of application security testing solutions. The company helps organizations around the world secure their software quickly, integrate security efficiently in their development environments, and safely innovate with new technologies. To learn how Black Duck can help you build trust in your software, visit www.blackduck.com.

1. Gartner, Inc. “Magic Quadrant for Application Security Testing” by Mark Horvath, Dale Gardner, Manjunath Bhat, Ravisha Chugh, Angela Zhao, May 17, 2023.

Media Contacts:

Contacts:

Clearlake:
Jennifer Hurson

Lambert

[email protected]

Francisco Partners:
Whit Clay / Jake Cohen

Sloane & Company

[email protected] / [email protected]

Black Duck:
Liz Samet

Black Duck Software, Inc.

336.414.6753

[email protected]

SOURCE Clearlake Capital Group