US buyout major Blackstone on Thursday announced it is acquiring market intelligence firm International Data Group (IDG) for an enterprise value of $1.3 billion.
Blackstone-managed private equity funds have signed an agreement to buy IDG from Oriental Rainbow, a subsidiary of China Oceanwide Holdings Group.
Founded in 1964, IDG provides technology research, data, advisory services, and events through its IDC and IDG Communications units.
“The high-quality data, analytics, and insights IDG delivers to technology leaders are only becoming more critical as the pace of growth and innovation accelerates. IDG has a trusted brand and deep knowledge of tech suppliers and buyers, and our investment will help the company accelerate its plans for creating even more advanced product offerings across its business,” said Peter Wallace, Global Head of Core Private Equity at Blackstone.
The new ownership will allow IDG to invest significantly to grow its technology and product portfolio, including through strategic acquisitions, a statement said. The company and its subsidiaries have made multiple recent acquisitions.
In 2020, it purchased Triblio to expand its software-as-a-service platform. Last month, IDG acquired Metri to increase its IT pricing dataset and add IT budget and operations benchmarking and sourcing services to its portfolio.
“Additional capital investment from Blackstone will allow us to cultivate our rich history of innovation and accelerate our product roadmaps to bring our customers the deeper insights and data they need to succeed in today’s rapidly evolving digital economy,” added IDG chief executive Mohamad Ali.
Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC acted as an exclusive financial advisor to IDG.
King & Wood Mallesons acted as lead legal advisor and Mintz acted as co-legal advisor to IDG. Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP acted as legal advisor to Blackstone.
Blackstone is one of the world’s leading investment firms. In April, it held a $3.1 billion first close for its second Asia-focused private equity fund, exceeding the $2.4 billion raised for the first fund in 2018, according to the firm’s president and CEO Jonathan Gray.
The investment firm currently has $649 billion in assets under management.
China Oceanwide, meanwhile, is a privately held conglomerate founded by Lu Zhiqiang. Headquartered in Beijing, China, Oceanwide’s businesses include operations in financial services and real estate assets globally.