In keeping with our mission to provide comprehensive advertising analysis, MediaRadar puts together a report of the most important mergers and acquisitions news each week. Stay in the loop, whether you sell advertising space or focus on business development.
This week, 1-800-Flowers.Com moved into the seafood market by purchasing Vital Choice. Tech enabled financial media company Benzinga sold a majority stake to Beringer Capital. Anthology and Blackboard merged to form a massive EdTech ecosystem.
1-800-Flowers.com acquired Vital Choice
In an unanticipated move, floral and foods e-commerce gift retailer 1-800-Flowers.Com Inc. is expanding into seafood, organic food, and supplements with its acquisition of Vital Choice.
Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed but Vital Choice is now a wholly-owned subsidiary of 1-800-Flowers.com and adds more than 400 new “better-for-you products” to the company’s assortment of products. This includes: frozen, canned and smoked wild fish, shellfish, fish-based pet treats, omega-3 and other supplements.
1-800-Flowers.com Group President of Gourmet Foods and Gift Baskets, Steve Lightman said “Vital Choice is a natural fit with our existing brands to help drive continued growth in… food that is healthy, natural, and convenient, with newer, younger customers.”
Beringer Capital gains majority stake in financial company Benzinga
Benzinga, a Detroit-based tech-enabled finance media company, has sold a majority stake in the company to a Toronto-based private equity firm, Beringer Capital. The deal values Benzinga at $300 million.
Benzinga is one of the most widely used tools by individual investors and is integrated into every major online brokerage.
With the acquisition, the companies hope to grow Benzinga’s subscriber and user base by providing more thorough content, vertical news coverage, new media systems, wide-ranging business-to-business partnerships, continuous UX/UI improvements and more.
Earlier this year, Beringer Capital acquired a majority stake in real estate industry news media company Inman News.
Anthology and Blackboard merge to form robust EdTech solution
Prominent higher education software solutions-provider Anthology has merged with Blackboard Inc., a leading global EdTech software and solutions company.
This move creates a massive enterprise that is the most comprehensive and modern EdTech ecosystem at a global scale for education. The final, logistical details of the combination are expected to be dealt with by the end of 2021, subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions.
The parent company of the newly merged group will be Anthology, while the Blackboard brand will continue as an essential part of its brand portfolio.
“We will have a data-driven product portfolio that seeks to touch every constituent at the institution and will aim to transform the way education uses technology to engage, connect, teach, learn and drive efficiencies across the institution,” Jim Milton, chairman and CEO of Anthology, said about the merger.
In Other News
Other deals and developments are taking place:
- Asset management firm T. Rowe Price Group, Inc. announced that it is acquiring investment firm Oak Hill Advisors for $4.2 billion.
- Consumer credit reporting agency TransUnion announced that it is selling TransUnion Healthcare, Inc. to nThrive, Inc., a healthcare revenue cycle management SaaS company
- DNA genetics testing company 23andMe Holding Co. announced that it is acquiring online medical care platform Lemonaid Health for $400 million.
- Scientific Games Corporation announced that it is selling its Lottery business to Brookfield Business Partners L.P. for $6.05 billion.
- According to The Wall Street Journal, London-based email-security software company Mimecast Ltd. is exploring a possible sale.
- At its Connect event, Facebook, Inc. revealed that it is changing its name to Meta, as part of the company’s effort to become more than just a social media company.
