Press release
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sinch Sinch extends leadership in conversational messaging through acquisition of MessengerPeople Stockholm , Sweden - September 22 , 2021 - Sinch AB ( publ ) , a global leader in cloud communications for mobile customer engagement , today announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Messenger People , a leading German software - as - as - service platform for conversational messaging . Sinch will pay a total enterprise value of EUR 48 million , with a total cash consideration of EUR 33.6 million and EUR 14.4 million paid in the form of new shares in Sinch . Using yesterday's EUR / SEK exchange rate of 10.18 , this corresponds to an enterprise value of SEK 489 million . Founded in Munich in 2015 , Messenger People offers a cloud - based software suite that makes it easy for businesses to engage with their customers via messaging apps like WhatsApp , Telegram and Apple Business Chat ( iMessage ) . A pioneer in its field , MessengerPeople was amongst the very first innovators to recognize the potential of next generation messaging channels and build software tools for businesses to leverage these capabilities . More than 700 businesses use MessengerPeople applications to engage with their customers , and around 80 % of these businesses are based in the DACH region . " I'm very impressed with the Messenger People team and their success in bringing innovative products to market . Most businesses have yet to discover the benefits of conversational messaging , and together we are superbly placed to win in this market as uptake now begins to accelerate " , comments Oscar Werner , CEO of Sinch . With easy - to - use applications that are designed for business users , Messenger People complements Sinch's API - based offering for larger enterprises and channel partners . The MessengerPeople platform is particularly well - suited for pre - sales and customer care , which accounts for around 85 percent of current volumes . Monetization is based primarily on subscriptions and monthly active users , through a software - as - a - service ( SaaS ) model , rather than on transaction volumes . MessengerPeople serves businesses across a broad range of verticals such as eCommerce , Automotive , Public Authorities , and Media . Current customers include travel & tourism leader TUI , e - commerce specialist Women's Best , and the state government of Telangana , India . In the year ending December 2021 , MessengerPeople is expected to generate revenues of EUR 5.1 million , Gross Profit of EUR 4.5 million , and Adjusted EBITDA of EUR 0.6 million . Underlying revenue growth compared to the previous year is expected to reach 35 percent . The company has around 40 employees and is based in Munich , Germany . The acquisition builds on Sinch's ongoing organic investments and previous acquisitions in next - generation , conversational messaging . Integration cost is estimated to SEK 16 million over 12 months , with targets centered on cross - sales , accelerated geographic expansion , and product integration with Sinch's communication APIs and related Sinch applications . " Mobile messaging is simple , quick and interactive - and used by people all over the world . Empowering businesses to use messaging is a tremendous market opportunity , and teaming up with Sinch gives us the size to pursue it on a global scale " , comments Franz Buchenberger , founder & CEO of MessengerPeople . The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter 2021 and will be financed with a combination of new Sinch shares and Sinch's available cash at hand . Sinch has a financial target to maintain net debt / adjusted EBITDA below 3.5x over time . As of Q2 2021 , the company had a net cash position , with net debt / adjusted EBITDA of -9.6x , in anticipation of upcoming transactions . Taking into consideration the expected , upcoming payment for Inteliquent and MessageMedia , pro forma Net debt / Adj EBITDA is 2.6x . All else equal , the acquisition of Messenger People increases Sinch's pro forma net debt / EBITDA by 0.1x to 2.7x .