AvidXchange acquired for $2.2B
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Charlotte-based fintech company AvidXchange is being sold for $2.2 billion to two firms.
Why it matters: AvidXchange is one of Charlotte's biggest startup success stories, growing from a couple of guys in a coffee shop in 2000 to a unicorn by 2021, and now employing 1,600 people nationwide.
- Nearly 1,200 of those employees are based in the Charlotte metro, according to the company's LinkedIn.
Driving the news: TPG, a San Francisco-based private equity firm, will acquire a majority interest in AvidXchange, according to a press release.
- Atlanta-headquartered Corpay, a global business payments and spend management company, will acquire a minority interest.
AvidXchange, which went public in 2021, will become a private company. TPG and Corpay will acquire AvidXchange for $10 per share in an all-cash transaction.
- This represents a 22% premium over the company's closing price of $8.20 on Tuesday and a 45% premium over the $6.89 closing price as of March 12 — the last trading day before reports of a potential sale surfaced.
- Some AvidXchange executives agreed to roll over a "significant portion" of their equity for the deal, according to the press release.
Flashback: As the story goes, CEO Michael Praeger and co-founder David Miller started AvidXchange in 2000 in a coffee shop, with the idea to change how mid-sized companies manage their accounts payable and payments.
- The company grew organically and through acquisitions, including the 2014 purchase of Salt Lake City-based Piracle, into a leading provider of accounts payable automation software and payment solutions.
- AvidXchange moved into a newly built headquarters at the Music Factory in 2017 and holds the naming rights to the complex. That same year, the company reached unicorn status with a valuation of $1 billion.
What they're saying: In a joint press release, the companies said taking AvidXchange private will allow "flexibility to continue investing in growth and delivering integrated payment solutions that enable greater efficiency, visibility, and control for customers."
- Ron Clarke, chairman and CEO of Corpay, said AvidXchange is highly complementary to its corporate payments business. AvidXchange works with more than 8,500 middle-market businesses.
- "With TPG and Corpay, we will have the resources and long-term focus to scale our platform and provide more innovative solutions that help our customers across the country transform their accounts payable processes," Praeger said.
What's next: The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2025.