A report from The New York Times said the quick turnaround sale of Digital insight to NCR Corp by Thoma Bravo was a profitable flip for the private equity firm. Just four months ago, Thoma Bravo closed its purchase of Digital Insight. The mobile banking technology provider was sold to the private equity firm by financial software company Intuit for a price tag of USD 1.025 billion. However, a mere 124 days after the deal was completed, Thoma Bravo did a turnaround and divested the firm to one of Intuit's competitors, NCR Corp, in a deal worth USD 1.65 billion.
The report touted the turnaround as a big victory for Thoma Bravo. The private equity company seemed like a savvy buyer and seller by being able to sell the firm for over half a billion dollars in less than six months. Taking into consideration the difference in price and the timing of the sale, the report added that Thoma Bravo was able to add USD 5 million to Digital Insight's value for each day that it owned the firm.
However, the sale also brought questions to the fore regarding why NCR agreed to pay premium price for the company just four months after it was sold to its new owners. Dan Primack told The Dealbook, "So would Intuit just not sell the unit to NCR, or did NCR drop the ball?"
Whether Thoma Bravo had planned to exit Digital Insight quickly still remains unclear. Orlando Bravo, Thoma Bravo's managing partner, had said that he looked forward to working with the management team at Digital Insight in order to grow the business when the acquisition was closed in August.
In a statement about the recent sale, Bravo still gave no indication if had been previously planned. In a statement, he said, "Thoma Bravo was able to establish Digital Insight as a standalone company following our acquisition from Intuit in August, while also offering Intuit a successful and efficient outcome. Digital Insight has attracted interest from NCR with its strong set of online and mobile banking products, rich client list, and accomplished employees."
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