Top 10 Enterprise M&A Deals of 2020

Although many will likely recall 2020 for challenging reasons, the year proved exceptionally strong for mergers and acquisitions within the enterprise sector, with the ten largest transactions reaching a remarkable $165.2 billion in total value.

This marks the third consecutive year I have assembled this report. The previous year’s total was $40 billion, and the year before that, $87 billion. These figures are significantly lower when contrasted with the outcomes observed in 2020.

The largest transaction of the prior year – Salesforce’s acquisition of Tableau for $15.7 billion – would have only ranked fifth on this year’s compilation. Furthermore, the fourth-largest deal from last year, VMware’s purchase of Pivotal for $2.7 billion, would not have appeared on this year’s list at all.

The substantial 2020 figure was largely driven by four acquisitions within the chip industry, collectively amounting to $106 billion. Notably, the largest of these transactions, valued at $40 billion, equaled the entire total of the previous year’s list. However, acquisitions of software companies also contributed to the overall result, with three of these being completed through private equity firms.

It is important to recognize that the $165.2 billion total does not encompass the Oracle-TikTok situation, which currently faces regulatory hurdles and may not be finalized. Additionally, it excludes two transactions solely focused on fintech – Morgan Stanley’s acquisition of E-Trade for $13 billion and Intuit’s purchase of Credit Karma for $7.1 billion – though the $5.3 billion Visa-Plaid deal was included due to the enterprise-level API nature of Plaid and its alignment with our selection criteria.

As you review this year’s list, it’s crucial to understand that it represents an unusual year in terms of overall deal activity. Typically, most years feature one or two very large transactions, defined here as exceeding $10 billion. This year, however, saw six such megadeals. Moreover, numerous unlisted deals, ranging in value from $1 billion to $3.2 billion, existed, several of which would have qualified for inclusion in less active years.

Now, without further delay, here is this year’s ranking of the Top 10 M&A deals, presented from smallest to largest:

10. Vista snags Pluralsight for $3.5B

The acquisition of Pluralsight by Vista Equity Partners was finalized this week, positioning it as the tenth-largest deal we’ve tracked with a valuation of $3.5 billion. This surpasses the $3.2 billion transaction involving Twilio and Segment. Vista continues to demonstrate a strong investment strategy, and this latest move includes taking Pluralsight, a digital learning resource geared towards professionals in the information technology sector, private once more. Given the increasing reliance on online resources, this acquisition appears to be a strategically sound decision.

9. Clayton Dubilier & Rice acquires Epicor from KKR for $4.7B

This transaction represented a significant, though relatively quiet, private equity investment involving a substantial transfer of funds. Epicor had formerly been under the ownership of the private equity firm KKR. While not widely recognized by the general public, Epicor is a well-established enterprise resource planning (ERP) business with origins tracing back to the early 1970s. Throughout much of the 21st century, the company has experienced considerable financial challenges. It’s possible that Clayton Dubilier & Rice intends to enhance profitability through the optimization of existing maintenance agreements. The rationale behind this acquisition is otherwise difficult to ascertain.

8. Insight Partners nabs Veeam for $5B

A significant private equity transaction saw Insight Partners acquire Veeam, a Swiss-based company specializing in cloud data protection and disaster recovery, for a valuation of $5 billion. This acquisition was among the first major deals of 2020 and signaled a trend for the year ahead. Insight had formerly provided Veeam with $500 million in funding and, satisfied with the company’s progress, proceeded to purchase it outright. In contrast to the Epicor acquisition, Insight likely intends to further develop Veeam, potentially leading to an initial public offering or a future sale for financial gain.

7. Visa snags Plaid for $5.3B

Visa acquired Plaid, a company specializing in application programming interfaces (APIs) designed to simplify connections to banking systems, in a transaction valued at $5.3 billion, occurring shortly after Insight’s purchase of Veeam in January. Visa aimed to leverage financial resources to update its infrastructure and identified Plaid as a key component in this modernization effort. However, the Department of Justice has expressed concerns regarding the acquisition. The agreement is currently paused as the DOJ conducts a review, and its ultimate approval remains uncertain.

6. Marvell acquires Inphi for $10B

Among the four largest semiconductor industry acquisitions this year, Marvell completed a $10 billion purchase of Inphi. This acquisition was driven by Inphi’s expertise in optical chips, which Marvell intends to integrate with its existing copper-based chip portfolio. The move positions Marvell to better serve emerging, high-demand applications such as cloud computing and 5G networks.

5. Koch Industries buys Infor for $13B

Koch Industries doesn't frequently appear in reports concerning technology mergers and acquisitions, but it significantly impacted the sector in February by acquiring Infor, a well-established cloud ERP provider founded in 2002. The acquisition price was close to $13 billion. This deal provided substantial returns for Infor’s investors and access to Koch Industries’ considerable financial resources, enabling continued expansion for the company.

4. Analog joins forces with Maxim for $21B

This acquisition stems from a shared conviction that increased scale will benefit both organizations, prompting Analog to invest $21 billion in acquiring its competitor in the semiconductor industry. The two businesses possess complementary strengths, and the resulting merged company is projected to have a value of approximately $68 billion; however, the specifics of this transaction will likely draw significant scrutiny from regulatory bodies.

3. Salesforce grabs Slack for $27.7B

The announcement at the close of last month came as a surprise to many, with initial reports indicating substantial conversations were underway between the two software-as-a-service businesses leading up to Thanksgiving. The agreement, valued at $27.7 billion, was finalized shortly after and revealed during the company’s financial results presentation. While representing a significant financial investment, Salesforce anticipates that Slack will serve as a crucial component, integrating all elements of its extensive enterprise software suite into a unified communication platform.

2. AMD acquires Xilink for $35B

In September, AMD completed its purchase of Xilink, aiming to establish a leading semiconductor company capable of handling diverse computing tasks. The $35 billion investment reflects a significant industry trend of consolidation, with increasingly large-scale acquisitions and heightened competition throughout the year.

1. Nvidia purchases ARM for $40B

The most significant transaction of the year involved Nvidia’s acquisition of ARM for a remarkable $40 billion. Currently, this is a very intricate agreement with numerous factors at play and substantial financial implications. Whether regulatory bodies will approve the acquisition is yet to be determined, and a resolution may take several years.

Note: Following our initial report, Thoma Bravo revealed on December 21, 2020, its plan to acquire RealPage for $10.2 billion, a figure that would have qualified it for inclusion on this list.