Bentley Systems Incorporated, the infrastructure engineering software company, has entered into a definitive agreement with investors led by Accel-KKR to acquire Seequent, a provider of software for geological and geophysical modeling, geotechnical stability, and cloud services for geodata management, visibility, and collaboration for $900 million in cash, subject to adjustment, plus 3,141,361 BSY Class B shares. The acquisition of Seequent is expected to initially add approximately 10% to each of Bentley Systems’ key financial metrics (ARR, annual revenue, and EBITDA) and is expected to be accretive to Bentley’s organic growth rate. Most significantly, both companies anticipate the combination will deepen the potential of infrastructure digital twins to help understand and mitigate environmental risks, advancing resilience and sustainability.
Upon closing, Seequent will operate as a stand-alone Bentley subsidiary, with Seequent’s current chief operating officer Graham Grant, succeeding its retiring CEO Shaun Maloney, reporting to Bentley’s chief product officer Nicholas Cumins.
Bentley’s CEO Greg Bentley said, “They have made farsighted decisions to benefit the future at every stage: identifying and then laser-focusing on the 3D “vertical” opportunity in earth modeling, institutionalizing a subscription commercial model from the outset, directly populating the appropriate global markets, acquiring and consolidating the best software for adjacent disciplines, and bringing it all together with cloud services, ready for digital twins advancement together. I can think of no greater compliment than our determination to leave intact Seequent, as a Bentley Company, entrusting its management with greater responsibilities to continue their dynamic momentum. I congratulate retiring CEO Shaun Maloney on the quality of the business and the team he has developed, and we will warmly welcome his established successor Graham Grant, and all Seequent colleagues, to our shared values and endeavors in advancing infrastructure.”
Tom Barnds, co-managing partner at Accel-KKR and Seequent board member, said, “We had been looking forward to Seequent’s IPO this year, but we are so convinced of the logic of this combination that we are glad to anticipate instead becoming BSY shareholders. The Seequent board congratulates and thanks Shaun Maloney for his long service and remarkably consistent success in growing this great business, its great management team, and this great outcome for Seequent investors and colleagues.”
BofA Securities is serving as financial advisor and Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP and Bell Gully are acting as legal counsel to Bentley Systems. Goldman Sachs is serving as financial advisor and DLA Piper is acting as legal counsel to Seequent.