Velti plc, a leading global provider of mobile marketing and advertising technology, announced today that it has agreed to sell its U.S., U.K., and India mobile marketing businesses and certain of its U.S.-based advertising businesses to affiliates of GSO Capital Partners LP, the credit division of Blackstone BX +1.96%.
“We are pleased to have reached an agreement with GSO, a firm with substantial financial resources that understands the value of Velti’s state-of-the-art technology, industry-leading solutions, and global presence,” said Velti Chief Executive Officer Alex Moukas. “Both this sale agreement and GSO’s recent acquisition of our secured debt demonstrate GSO’s commitment to providing the business with the support necessary to grow and prosper.”
Alex Moukas also added: “Importantly, this process will be virtually invisible to customers, all of whom can continue to rely on Velti to provide premier technology and solutions to support their own businesses.”
“We look forward to working with the Company to execute on the growth potential of the mobile marketing industry,” said Scott Eisenberg, of GSO Capital Partners. “The increasingly important need for businesses to have effective and reliable mobile communication with their customers requires a sophisticated and scalable technology. We believe that the Velti platform, including the Air2Web and Mobile Interactive Group acquisitions, is well positioned to grow share in this market.”
The transaction is expected to close before the end of 2013.
Velti was founded over 13 years ago to develop and execute highly interactive campaigns with subscribers for mobile operators. Long before mobile was a major force, their founders had a vision for changing how companies initiate, develop, and deliver advertising and marketing initiatives across the mobile channel.
By Lolita A. Alford