Enterprise software maker Genesys confidentially files for US IPO (updated)

Zoom Communications

21/10/2024 13:19

(Adds IPO details in paragraph 4, investors in paragraphs 5-6,
background and context on company in paragraphs 7-9,)
       Oct 21 (Reuters) - Genesys, an AI-driven developer of
call center software, said on Monday it has confidentially filed
for an initial public offering in the United States, signaling
growing investor appetite for new listings after a prolonged dry
spell.
    The move comes as the IPO market recovers with investors
once again turning warmer towards tech startups that they had
shunned for over two years due to concerns around lofty
valuations. 
        Analysts expect companies catering to the AI market to
lead the charge for tech sector listings, amid heightened 
expectations of multi-fold growth over the next few years as
corporates increasingly find more generative AI use cases. 
    Genesys did not reveal any details about its IPO or a
timeline for going public, but a September report from Bloomberg
News citing sources said the company could raise as much as $2
billion in the offering. 
    In December 2021, Genesys raised $580 million in a funding
round led by Salesforce Ventures, valuing it at $21 billion.
Other investors in the round had included Zoom Video
Communications  ZM.O , D1 Capital Partners and funds and
accounts managed by BlackRock  BLK.N . 
        Genesys was acquired by private equity firm Permira
Holdings from Alcatel-Lucent in 2012, valuing the company then
at about $1.5 billion. Hellman & Friedman invested about $900
million in the company in 2016 for an equity stake.   
    The company operates in over 100 countries with more than
6,000 employees, according to its website. Its partners include
tech giants Amazon Web Services, Google Cloud, Microsoft
 MSFT.O  and Adobe  ADBE.O .  
        Its customers span across the technology, retail and
industrial sector, and include Virgin Atlantic, Coca-Cola
Bottlers' Sales and Services and Ethiopian Airlines. 
        The company's cloud platform fetched over $1.6 billion
in revenue in the second quarter of its fiscal year 2025, more
than 35% higher than last year, it said in September.

 (Reporting by Manya Saini and Niket Nishant in Bengaluru;
Editing by Shailesh Kuber)
 ((Manya.Saini@thomsonreuters.com; X: manya__saini;))