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Salesforce, the world leader in CRM, and Slack Technologies, Inc., the most innovative business communications platform, have signed a definitive agreement under which Salesforce will acquire Slack. Under the terms of the agreement, Slack shareholders will receive $ 26.79 in cash and 0.0776 Salesforce common shares for each Slack share, representing an enterprise value of approximately $ 27.7 billion based on closing price. of Salesforce common stock on November 30, 2020.
The combination of Slack with Salesforce Customer 360 will be transformative for customers and the industry. The combination will create the operating system for the new way of working, allowing companies to grow and succeed in a fully digital world.
“Stewart and his team have built one of the most beloved platforms in the history of enterprise software, with an incredible ecosystem around it,” said Marc Benioff, president and CEO of Salesforce. “This is a match made in heaven. Together, Salesforce and Slack will shape the future of business software and transform the way everyone works in the fully digital world, where you work from anywhere. I am delighted to welcome Slack to Salesforce Ohana once the transaction closes. “
“Salesforce started the cloud revolution, and two decades later, we continue to leverage all the power it offers to transform the way we work. The opportunity we see together is huge, ”said Stewart Butterfield, CEO and co-founder of Slack. “As software plays an increasingly critical role in the performance of every organization, we share a vision of reduced complexity, greater power and flexibility, and ultimately a greater degree of organizational alignment and agility. Personally, I think this is the most strategic combination in the history of software and I can’t wait to get started. “
Acquisition to build the operating system for the new way of working
This year’s events have greatly accelerated the shift for businesses and governments to a fully digital world, where work happens wherever people are, whether at the office, at home, or somewhere in between. They need to deliver connected experiences to their customers at all touch points and allow their employees to work seamlessly wherever they are.
Together, Salesforce and Slack will provide companies with a single source of truth for their business and a unified platform to connect employees, customers and partners with each other and with the applications they use every day, all within their existing workflows. .
Slack to become the new interface for Salesforce Customer 360
Salesforce is the number one CRM that enables companies to sell, service, market, and conduct business transactions from anywhere. Slack brings people, data, and tools together so teams can collaborate and get work done from anywhere. Slack Connect extends the benefits of Slack to enable communication and collaboration between a company’s employees and all of its external partners, from suppliers to customers.
Slack will be deeply integrated into every Salesforce Cloud. As the new interface for Salesforce Customer 360, Slack will transform the way people communicate, collaborate, and take action on customer information in Salesforce, as well as information from all of your other business applications and systems to be more productive, take smarter, faster decisions and create connected customer experiences.
Slack will expand its business presence as part of the world’s number one CRM
Slack serves leading organizations in all industries around the world, from the fastest growing startups to Fortune 500 companies such as Starbucks, Target and TD Ameritrade, along with leading academic institutions, nonprofits and governments in more from 150 countries.
As part of the world’s # 1 CRM, Slack will be able to expand its presence in the business, not only among Salesforce customers, but also for any business undergoing a digital transformation. Upon closing of the transaction, Slack will become an operating unit of Salesforce and will continue under the leadership of CEO Stewart Butterfield.
Combined to form the largest open ecosystem of enterprise applications and workflows
Connecting people and data across systems, applications, and devices is one of the biggest challenges businesses face in today’s fully digital world.
Slack’s open platform seamlessly integrates with more than 2,400 apps that people use to collaborate, communicate, and work. With the largest enterprise application ecosystem, the Salesforce platform is the easiest way to create and deliver applications to connect with customers in a whole new way.
Together, Salesforce and Slack will create the largest open ecosystem of business applications and workflows and enable millions of developers to build the next generation of applications – with clicks, not code.
Details of the proposed transaction
The Salesforce and Slack board of directors approved the transaction and the Slack board recommends that Slack shareholders approve the transaction and adopt the merger agreement. The transaction is anticipated to close in the second quarter of Salesforce’s 2022 fiscal year, subject to Slack shareholder approval, receipt of required regulatory approvals, and other customary closing conditions.
Salesforce has also entered into a voting agreement with certain shareholders of Slack common stock, whereby each of those shareholders has agreed to vote all of their Slack shares in favor of the transaction at the special Slack shareholders meeting to be held. in connection with the transaction. , subject to certain terms and conditions. The Slack shares subject to the agreement represent approximately 55% of the current outstanding voting power of Slack common shares.
Salesforce expects to fund the cash portion of the transaction consideration with a combination of new debt and cash on Salesforce’s balance sheet. Salesforce has obtained a commitment from Citigroup Global Markets Inc., Bank of America, NA, and JPMorgan Chase Bank, NA for a $ 10 billion 364-day senior unsecured bridge facility, subject to customary terms.
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