Database management system provider MariaDB plc announced today that it had been acquired by K1 Investment Management for an undisclosed price.
MariaDB had previously disclosed in February that it had received takeover interest from K1, including having received an unsolicited non-binding proposal to acquire the company. Under the earlier proposal, K1 was offering to take MariaDB private for 55 cents per share at a cost of $37 million.
Founded in 2009, MariaDB offers a paid version of the open-source relational database software of the same name. The company’s products are designed to deliver high availability, scalability and performance, making them a popular alternative to proprietary databases such as those offered by Oracle Corp.
The company’s offerings include MariaDB Enterprise Server and SkySQL, fully managed database-as-a-service platforms that support both transactional and analytical workloads. The services allow businesses to leverage the power of open-source databases in cloud environments with minimal management overhead.
MariaDB’s services are used by companies across industries, including finance, telecommunications and e-commerce, to handle mission-critical applications. The company’s focus on open-source development also ensures constant innovation, with strong community and enterprise support to meet diverse data needs.
MariaDB went public on the New York Stock Exchange in December 2022, listing at $11.55 per share. However, it was not a particularly successful initial public offering, with the company’s share price down nearly 40%, to $6.70, on its first day of trading. The company’s stock has slid since that time, last trading at 55 cents – around the likely price K1 ended up paying for MariaDB.
Coming into its acquisition, MariaDB had nearly 700 active customers, with notable clients including Deutsche Bank AG, Nokia Corp., Red Hat Inc., Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd., ServiceNow Inc. and the U.S. Department of Defense.
Alongside its acquisition, MariaDB also announced the appointment of Rohit de Souza as chief executive officer. Rohit’s previous experience includes roles at Actian Corp. and Micro Focus International plc, where he led global organizations that drove growth and transformation. Former CEO Paul O’Brien will remain involved with the company as an advisor.
“We are thrilled to welcome MariaDB to the K1 portfolio and to have Rohit leading the company into its next phase of growth,” Sujit Banerjee, managing director of K1, said in a statement. “Together, we aim to accelerate product innovation and continue MariaDB’s mission of delivering high-quality, enterprise-grade solutions to meet the growing demands of the market.”