Kaseya completed the acquisition of Datto. The American market authority could have intervened, but did not launch an official investigation. Kaseya got greenlit as the company’s new owner.
In April 2022 Datto and Kaseya signed a €5.7 billion deal. The plan was shared with the US market authority, as is customary for takeovers. The market authority didn’t start an official investigation. Kaseya proceeded as planned and has now completed the acquisition. Existing shareholders will receive $35.50 per share. Datto is no longer listed on the stock exchange.
Both Datto and Kaseya deliver software for managed service providers (MSPs). Datto specializes in backups. Kaseya focuses on endpoint-, service- and network management. According to Kaseya, 17 Datto workflows will be integrated into Kaseya’s platform in the coming month. Prices for new Datto licenses are lowered by an average of 10 percent. Datto retains its own name and continues to operate independently. Further details are unknown.
“As we promised when we announced our intent to buy Datto, customers are going to see investment in innovation and integrations go up and prices come down”, said Kaseya CEO Fred Voccola. “We are increasing our technical investment in our products to ensure that every one of them will be supported and integrated. The end goal is to be the most affordable and best option on the market.”
Criticism
Not everyone is happy about the acquisition. Two months back, users of a Reddit forum for MSPs urged each other to file complaints with the US market authority. The forum members distrust Kaseya. In 2021, the organization failed to prevent a data breach that caused cyber attacks on hundreds of customers. Further investigation revealed that the security problems had been raised by employees with Kaseya’s management for years. Most employees were ignored.
It’s unclear if and how many complaints the American market authority received about the acquisition. We assume that the market authority does not see any serious risks, as no official investigation was launched. Kaseya followed the rules thus far. In the end, Datto’s board gets to determine whether an acquisition is the best option for shareholders. Kaseya’s offer was accepted. Customers will have to make do with that.
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