First Derivatives plc, a technology provider, announced this Tuesday via the London Stock Exchange that it has completed the acquisition of the minority shareholdings in Kx Systems, a subsidiary of First Derivatives, for a consideration of $53.8 million in cash.
Following the acquisition, First Derivatives now owns 100 percent of Kx Systems. The payment was paid from the company’s available facilities, the statement released today said.
Kx Systems was founded in 1993. The company is a data analysis software developer and vendor, providing its customers with tools to process real-time and historical data. It offers in-memory and time-series databases. Kx Systems has two databases, kdb, and kdb+.
First Derivatives Acquires 600,022 Shares
The acquisition was originally announced back in July of last year, with the transaction expected to be closed on or before June 29, 2019. As Finance Magnates reported, the minority shareholders owned 600,022 shares.
Among them were the co-founders and current directors of Kx Systems Arthur Whitney and Janet Lustgarten. The initial agreement to acquire the subsidiary was made in October 2014.
As per this initial agreement, First Derivatives will pay $12 million to the minority shareholders in lieu of anticipated dividends for the period up to October 31, 2021.
Brian Conlon, CEO at First Derivatives
Source: Financial Times
Commenting on the acquisition, Brian Conlon, Chief Executive Officer of First Derivatives, said: "Since we acquired a controlling stake in Kx Systems in October 2014 we have invested heavily to deliver the performance advantages of our combined solutions, branded as Kx technology, to a range of end-markets.
“We are making exciting progress as we demonstrate our ability to transform our customers' operational performance by unlocking the value in their data. Full ownership of Kx Systems is an important milestone as we continue to commercialise our technology."
The completion of the transactions follows on from the technology firm reporting its preliminary financial results for the full year ending February 28, 2019.
As Finance Magnates highlighted, the consulting firm and software provider to trading companies notched an uptick in key financial areas and metrics, namely double-digit rises in profits and revenue.
