Salesforce To Acquire Slack

Salesforce confirms deal to buy Slack for $27.7 billion. Transaction is Salesforce’s largest ever acquisition and forms one of the biggest players in the business-software market. By Aaron Tilley of The Wall Street Journal. 1, 2020 7:36 pm ET.
Salesforce (NYSE: CRM), the global leader in CRM, and Slack Technologies, Inc. (NYSE: WORK), the most innovative enterprise communications platform, have entered into a definitive agreement under which Salesforce will acquire Slack.
Nov 25, 2020 Salesforce is eyeing what could become its biggest-ever acquisition: Slack, the workplace instant messenger. The two tech companies recently held talks about a deal whose value would likely top $17.

Cloud computing giant Salesforce said it will acquire workplace messaging service Slack in a deal valued at $27.7 billion.

11.30.20 - Salesforce has agreed to a deal to buy Slack, with the deal expected to be announced Tuesday after markets close. The deal is expected to be about half cash and half stock and will price Slack at a premium. Salesforce is set to report quarterly earnings on Tuesday. Slack’s market cap was more than $24 billion as of Monday morning.

Salesforce To Acquire Slack For $27.7b

'Together, Salesforce and Slack will shape the future of enterprise software and transform the way everyone works in the all-digital, work-from-anywhere world,' Benioff said in a statement.

Slack CEO Stewart Butterfield added that 'the opportunity we see together is massive,' calling the deal 'the most strategic combination in the history of software.'

'As software plays a more and more critical role in the performance of every organization, we share a vision of reduced complexity, increased power and flexibility, and ultimately a greater degree of alignment and organizational agility,' Butterfield said.

Saleforce said Slack will be 'deeply integrated into every Salesforce Cloud' and become the new interface for Salesforce Customer 360. When combined, Salesforce and Slack will 'create the most extensive open ecosystem of apps and workflows for business and empower millions of developers to build the next generation of apps, with clicks not code,' according to the companies.

Slack Sale

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Tech industry analysts speculate the deal is partly a way for Salesforce to compete with fellow cloud computing giant Microsoft, which owns its own suite of Teams workplace messaging software. Dan Ives, managing director of equity research at Wedbush Securities, said in a memo that keeping pace with Microsoft was the 'core reason for this deal.'

Ives also noted that with more people working from home 'messaging platforms such as Zoom, Slack, and Teams have revolutionized the way that enterprises view collaboration software going forward.'

Even after a vaccine is readily available and employees begin returning to the office in 2021, Ives noted, this type of software will only become 'further embedded in enterprise initiatives.'

Cloud computing giant Salesforce said it will acquire workplace messaging service Slack in a deal valued at $27.7 billion.

Salesforce To Buy Slack

Salesforce shares slipped Wednesday, falling 10% in early trading as Slack slipped by about 3%.

The move comes as the pandemic has accelerated demand for remote work and workplace management software, and signals that some believe that workforce shifts could become permanent.

MORE: Salesforce announces layoffs after quarterly revenue tops $5 billion

Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff called it a 'match made in heaven.'