a16z-backed data firms Fivetran, dbt Labs to merge in all-stock deal

By Krystal Hu (Reuters) -Data startups Fivetran and dbt Labs will merge in an all-stock deal, creating a combined data infrastructure company with nearly $600 million in annual revenue, the two companies told Reuters. The deal is structured as an all-stock exchange based on an agreed ratio tied to revenues and growth rates, Fivetran Chief Executive George Fraser said in an interview. The combined entity is worth more than its last private valuation, Fraser said, but added that the valuation will ultimately be determined by the market.  Fivetran was last publicly valued at $5.6 billion in September 2021, while dbt Labs was valued at $4.2 billion in a Series D round in February 2022. The companies share some investors, including Andreessen Horowitz. Upon closing, Fraser will serve as CEO of the combined company, while dbt Labs CEO Tristan Handy will become co-founder and president. The transaction, which unites two highly valued venture-backed startups, marks significant consolidation in the data tooling market as enterprises race to adapt infrastructure for artificial intelligence applications, which require organized access to internal data. "The thing is really unique about this combination is our emphasis on open infrastructure and interoperability… as everyone is trying to figure out how to use their business data in the context of AI," Fraser said. Oakland, California-based Fivetran specializes in automated data movement, helping companies pull information from various sources into a central data warehouse. Philadelphia-based dbt Labs created dbt, an open-source tool for transforming and preparing that data for analysis. Describing the companies' products as complementary, Fraser estimated that 80% to 90% of Fivetran's customers use dbt's tools. The new company will also keep dbt Core, the popular open-source version of dbt Labs' software, available under its current license. The goal is to build a more comprehensive platform for enterprises' data needs, Fraser said, with the increased scale and broader platform strengthening its position for a public listing, even though an IPO is not imminent. Fraser added that the deal is a merger of equals rather than an acquisition as the new company's board will have representation from both Fivetran and dbt Labs, and that the firm will be near cash-flow break-even. Fivetran and dbt Labs expect the deal to close within a year. The Information had earlier reported on talks between the two firms. (Reporting by Krystal Hu in San Francisco; Editing by Janane Venkatraman)

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