Blackstone To Buy Privately-held Vivint For $2 Billion Plus
Summary
Private equity giant Blackstone Group, L.P. (BX) Wednesday said it agreed to acquire privately-held home automation services provider Vivint, Inc. in a deal valued at more than $2 billion, including debt. "This acquisition by Blackstone is the next milestone needed to continue executing on our vision of connecting customers to the things that matter most to them — their homes, families, health, cars and businesses," Vivint Co-Founder and CEO Todd Pedersen said in a statement. Founded by Pedersen in 1999 as APX Alarm Security Solutions Inc. and named Vivint in February 2001, APX Alarm availed a $75 million credit facility from investment banker Goldman Sachs in July 2006 and extended it to $440 million in October 2009. The deal will help Vivint to extend its position in the home automation marketplace, while also partnering with Blackstone in the next phase of the companys continued growth and innovation. "Our partnership with Blackstone will enable us to expand upon our technology-based platform, accelerate the development and release of new services and enter new markets.