Private-Equity Firm to Acquire Pitney Bowes’ Production Mail-Printing Business

On April 30th, Pitney Bowes, which provides commerce solutions in the areas of shipping and mailing, data, and ecommerce, announced that Platinum Equity has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Pitney Bowes’ Document Messaging Technologies (DMT) production mail business and supporting software for $361 million. Pitney Bowes expects to use most of the net proceeds from the sale to pay down debt.

The firm expects the transaction will likely to be completed late in the second quarter, or early in the third quarter, subject to customary closing conditions.

Pitney Bowes’ Document Messaging Technologies production mail business is said to be a global leader in enterprise print, mail, and customer-communications solutions. Platinum Equity is a global private-equity firm with a focus on business operations and more than 20 years’ experience acquiring and operating businesses that have been part of large corporate entities.

Also included in the transaction is Pitney Bowes’ enterprise mail-, print- and data-management software business that integrates data with print streams to optimize document output for high-volume production mailers.

Platinum Equity Principal Adam Cooper commented “(Pitney Bowes) DMT is a leader in its market with all the tools it needs to thrive as a standalone business. It has a broad range of advanced inserting, sorting and print solutions and a committed global workforce that delivers world-class client satisfaction. “We look forward to partnering with the management team to drive operational excellence and invest in growth, both organically and through prospective strategic acquisitions.”

Pitney Bowes CEO Marc Lautenbach commented:  “In November 2017, we initiated a review of strategic alternatives to create long-term shareholder value,” said “Our decision to sell our Document Messaging Technology business is the result of a thorough evaluation of the best opportunity for long-term growth for both DMT and Pitney Bowes. As a stand-alone business, DMT will have greater flexibility and opportunity to build on its industry-leading portfolio, create greater market opportunity and deliver new client value. For Pitney Bowes, this transaction supports our move to higher growth markets and aligns with our strategic intent to do in the shipping market what we’ve done in mailing for almost 100 years – enabling global commerce by taking out the complexity and enhancing the value for clients.”

Founded in 1995 by Tom Gores, Platinum Equity is a global investment firm with $13 billion of assets under management and a portfolio of more than 30 operating companies. The firm is currently investing from Platinum Equity Capital Partners IV, a $6.5 billion global-buyout fund. Platinum Equity specializes in mergers, acquisitions and operations, acquiring and operating companies in a broad range of business markets, including manufacturing, distribution, transportation and logistics, equipment rental, metals services, media and entertainment, technology, telecommunications and other industries. Over the past 22 years Platinum Equity has completed more than 200 acquisitions.