Technology acquisition company Blackpearl Group says it plans to list on the NZX.
Blackpearl builds, acquires and markets data-driven cloud services, consisting of a suite of productivity and demand generation applications for small and medium-sized businesses.
The company was founded in 2012 and is driven from Wellington as well as Phoenix, Arizona.
Blackpearl’s founder and chief executive Nick Lissette said in the company’s statement that the intended listing on the NZX was a “platform for future growth”.
“A direct listing on the NZX offers us the fastest and lowest cost means of moving to a public platform,” he said.
Blackpearl recently completed the acquisition of email signature generator Newoldstamp and Lissette said it was the “right time” for Blackpearl to list and “accelerate its acquisition strategy”.
No capital raise has been associated with the listing but Lissette said becoming a listed company would offer future capital raising opportunities on the public market.
“Our goal for the intended listing is to accelerate acquisitions by being able to offer stock in a listed entity as part of our offer to companies we wish to acquire.”
Tim Crown, Blackpearl’s chair and also co-founder of Nasdaq-listed Fortune 500 company Insight Enterprises, said Blackpearl was a company with “enormous opportunity” and going public on the NZX was “the next logical step”.
“Having invested in creating a unique technology platform that can add value to a range of applications, we have an opportunity to innovate into new digital markets,” he said.
Blackpearl believes it will be among the fastest-growing Software as a Service (SaaS) companies on the NZX when it lists.
“Our strategy is about much more than simply acquiring technology businesses for their revenue, it’s about gaining access to new talent and markets, and most importantly, accelerating organic growth,” Lissette said.
“Our private platform enables us to help the businesses we acquire accelerate their growth and development.”
