Genesys Owners to Weigh IPO at Up to $20 Billion Value
Genesys Owners to Weigh IPO at Up to $20 Billion Value
(Bloomberg) -- The private equity owners of Genesys are considering an initial public offering for the call-center technology provider and aiming for a valuation as high as $20 billion, according to people with knowledge of the matter.
Permira and Hellman & Friedman have held talks with advisers about a U.S. listing of the company in the first half of 2022, said the people, who asked not to be identified because they weren’t authorized to speak publicly. No final decision has been made and the firms could elect for the company to remain private.
Representatives for Permira and Hellman declined to comment. A spokesperson for Genesys didn’t respond to a request for comment.
A listing would be the latest in a yearlong string of public offerings by London-headquartered Permira as it looks to take advantage of soaring public market valuations. Portfolio companies including shoemaker Dr. Martens Plc, cybersecurity firm Exclusive Networks SA and services provider Legalzoom.com Inc. have all gone public while software group Informatica LLC is also planning to, according to filings.
Genesys helps retailers, software companies and other companies deal with their customers by offering a wide variety of call-center services, from software that handles phone and online inquiries to chatbots that run on artificial intelligence. It has worked with companies including Microsoft Corp. and PayPal Holdings Inc., according to its website.
Hellman, which said it raised $24.4 billion for its latest buyout fund in July, has also been an active user of capital markets, taking fund distribution business Allfunds Group Plc public in a 1.88 billion euro ($2.2 billion) listing in April.
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