Blackstone acquired event tech company Cvent for $4.6B

In a seven-digit deal, Virginia event tech company Cvent was just acquired by private equity firm Blackstone.

Blackstone acquired the Tysons Corner company for a cool $4.6 billion, which will take the company private for a second time. The deal is expected to close in mid-2023, according to a statement from Cvent. In February, the company reportedly rejected a $3.9 billion acquisition deal from Blackstone because the offer was too low.

Cvent’s stockholders will receive $8.50 per share in the deal. An unnamed subsidiary of Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, the sovereign wealth fund of the eponymous Persian Gulf emirate, was a significant minority investor alongside Blackstone. Global investment firm Vista Equity Partners, which was a majority stockholder in the company, also invested a portion of its proceeds to finance the deal.

Cvent declined to speak with Technical.ly about the acquisition and what it means for the company.

“We are excited to share this announcement and look forward to our next chapter alongside the Blackstone team,” said Reggie Aggarwal, founder and CEO of Cvent, in a statement. “As one of the world’s largest private equity firms, Blackstone brings deep expertise in the event and hospitality industry, and with their backing, we plan to continue to invest in our business and deliver the innovative solutions that meet our customers’ needs and power the meetings and events ecosystem.”

Here’s a brief recap on the history of the Tysons Corner event tech company: In December 2021, the company went public on the Nasdaq in a deal that was valued at $801 million. This was the second time the now 24-year-old company had gone public: in 2013, it had a traditional IPO on the New York Stock Exchange, but went private again after an acquisition by Vista Equity Partners in 2016.

At the time, Cvent leadership attributed the success of its public offering to the huge public desire to return to events via both in-person and tech-enabled hybrid options.

“I think it’s a reflection, not just of us, but of the industry and the passion people have for this space and the willingness people have to want to get together,” Cvent Chief Marketing Officer Patrick Smith told Technical.ly in 2021.