Pegasystems Will Acquire Chordiant Software

Business process management software provider Pegasystems (Cambridge, Mass.) has announced it has entered into a definitive agreement for Pegasystems to acquire Cupertino, Calif.-based Chordiant Software.

Under the terms of the agreement, Pegasystems will make a cash tender offer of $5.00 per share for all outstanding shares of Chordiant common stock for a total purchase price of up to approximately $161.5 million, according to a Pegasystems news release. Upon satisfaction of the conditions to the tender offer and after such time as all shares tendered in the tender offer are accepted for payment, the agreement provides for the parties to effect, subject to customary conditions, a merger to be completed following the completion of the tender offer which would result in all shares not tendered in the tender offer being converted into the right to receive $5.00 per share in cash, the release says. Chordiant reported revenue of $76.3 million and $52.3 million of cash and investments for its four quarters ended Dec. 31, 2009. The boards of directors of both Pegasystems and Chordiant unanimously approved the definitive agreement.

Pegasystems' announcement constitutes another step in the continuing consolidation of enterprise software providers, according to Donald Light, a senior analyst with Celent (Boston). "The acquisition adds to the strength Pega has shown in recent years in many sectors, certainly including insurance. Chordiant brings a similar multi-industry set of relationships, and adds depth to Pega's CRM offerings," Light says. "This move will provide insurers with a very interesting BPM/Rules/CRM choice."

Pegasystems describes its own and Chordiant's offerings as complementary and says that Chordiant customers will be able to incorporate Pegasystems intent-driven process automation to enhance customer experience in their existing foundation and marketing solutions. Pegasystems' clients can take advantage of Chordiant's predictive decision management solutions, extensive CRM assets, and expertise in customer experience, the vendor states.

"This combination creates a broader portfolio which will offer an expanded client base new capabilities to meet next-generation CRM needs," comments Alan Trefler, Founder and CEO of Pegasystems. "We are excited to add Chordiant's technology and domain expertise to bolster our previously announced investment plans in BPM and CRM."

Anthony O'Donnell has covered technology in the insurance industry since 2000, when he joined the editorial staff of Insurance & Technology. As an editor and reporter for I&T and the InformationWeek Financial Services of TechWeb he has written on all areas of information ... View Full Bio