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SmartBear has received an investment from Vista Equity Partners

SmartBear Profile

  • SmartBear is behind the software that empowers developers, testers and operations engineers at over 24,000 of the world’s most innovative organizations, including Adobe, JetBlue, FedEx and Microsoft.
  • SmartBear is unique in the testing industry due to the company’s mix of scale, growth and profitability that drives adoption via a highly-efficient, low-cost / high-velocity go-to-market model.
  • More than 15 million practitioners use SmartBear tools to build, test and monitor great software, faster.
  • SmartBear is headquartered in Somerville, MA and owned by Francisco Partners and Vista Equity Partners

Vista Equity Profile

  • Vista Equity Partners, a U.S.-based private equity firm, has more than $58 billion in cumulative capital commitments and invests in software, data and technology-enabled organizations led by world-class management teams with long-term perspective.
  • Vista is a value-added investor, contributing professional expertise and multi-level support towards companies realizing their full potential; this investment approach is anchored by a sizable long-term capital base, experience in structuring technology-oriented transactions and proven management techniques that yield flexibility and opportunity in private equity investing.
  • The firm was founded in 2000 and headquartered in Austin with offices in San Francisco and New York.

Francisco Partners Profile

  • Francisco Partners is a leading global investment firm that specializes in partnering with technology and technology-enabled businesses that has raised over $24 billion in committed capital and invested in more than 300 technology companies.
  • FP strives to be an involved, value-added investor, capable of providing significant operational and strategic support to their portfolio companies on the most critical issues as they scale.
  • The firm was founded in 1999 and is headquartered in San Francisco.
Having the significant backing of two leading PE firms demonstrates the tremendous track record our products and employees have delivered so far, as well as the growth and demand in our markets. As every company is rapidly transforming to digital-first, we’re seeing a dramatically increasing demand for SmartBear solutions from developers, testers and entire organizations focused on consistently delivering high-quality software at the speed that business demands.

Frank Roe

CEO, SmartBear

The SmartBear suite of best-in-class DevOps solutions and its commitment to open source communities is a validation of the strength of its products and positions the company for continued growth in this rapidly accelerating market. We look forward to partnering with Frank and the SmartBear team along with Francisco Partners to continue providing innovative and valuable solutions to software teams around the world.

Michael Fosnaugh

Co-Head of Flagship Fund and Senior Managing Director, Vista Equity Partners

Frank and the SmartBear team have shown a tremendous ability to accelerate organic and inorganic growth over the last few years and we are excited to continue the journey with the company alongside Vista.

David Golob

Chief Investment Officer, Francisco Partners

  • Vista’s investment in SmartBear was announced on October 21, 2020; financial terms were not disclosed
  • Shea & Company acted as financial advisor to Francisco Partners and SmartBear on the transaction
Read The Press Release