Darktrace acquisition earns Mike Lynch £300m and chef Poppy Gustafsson gets £24m in private equity deal
- The company backed a bid of 620 pence per share from US private equity group Thoma Bravo
- The proposed sale will deepen the ‘existential crisis’ facing the London stock market
- Exodus of listed companies that are taken over or move abroad
Tech entrepreneur Mike Lynch is set for a payday of almost £300 million after Darktrace became the latest British company to be targeted by foreign predators.
Cyber security company FTSE 250 backed a bid of 620p per share – worth £4.25 billion – from US private equity group Thoma Bravo.
The proposed sale will deepen the “existential crisis” facing London’s stock market amid an exodus of listed companies being acquired or moving abroad.
Lynch, the company’s founder and investor, is on trial in the US on fraud charges related to his former company Autonomy, which he denies.
He and his wife Angela Bacares jointly own just under 7 percent of Darktrace – a stake worth £290m under the terms of the Thoma Bravo deal.
Bumper: Mike Lynch, the founder of the cybersecurity company, and Poppy Gustafsson
A spokesman for Lynch, 58, declined to comment yesterday on whether he supported the deal.
Darktrace CEO Poppy Gustafsson will receive £24 million for her efforts.
Charles Hall, head of research at Peel Hunt, said British listed companies with a combined value of more than £100 billion are now subject to bidding processes or switching to other listing locations such as New York or Frankfurt. He said: ‘The UK market is in an existential crisis and needs urgent action to ensure it remains a leading listing venue.’
And in a letter to MPs published yesterday, Minister Bim Afolami said he was working “every day” to accelerate reforms aimed at revitalizing the sector.
Among the companies seeking takeovers is mining giant Anglo American, which yesterday rejected a £31 billion approach from Australian-listed BHP.
High Street retailer Currys and insurer Direct Line have rejected overseas takeover offers.
But others, including carrier Wincanton and packaging giant DS Smith, have been snapped up by overseas bidders.
At the same time, companies including gambling group Flutter and travel agency Tui are moving their top listings to New York and Frankfurt, among others.
Darktrace’s announcement yesterday reflected a common complaint among such companies that they are not valued highly enough by the London market. It said: ‘Darktrace’s operating and financial performance is not proportionately reflected in its valuation, with shares trading at a significant discount to its global peer group.’
Darktrace shares rose 16.4 percent, or 85p, to 602p.
Chicago-based Thoma Bravo, led by Puerto Rican billionaire Orlando Bravo, 54, has more than £110 billion in assets under management with investments in more than 75 companies. Thoma Bravo said it planned to keep Darktrace’s headquarters in Cambridge and would remain a ‘UK technology champion’.
Founded in 2013, Darktrace employs approximately 2,300 people and operates in more than 110 provinces, with more than 9,400 customers.
Gustafsson, 41, said yesterday: “Our technology has never been more relevant in a world increasingly threatened by AI-powered cyber attacks.”