Alain Monié (Ingram Micro)
Los Angeles-based private equity firm Platinum Equity has completed its landmark US$7.2 billion acquisition of Ingram Micro, a move that sees ownership of the global technology distributor return to the country of its birth.
In December last year, Platinum Equity confirmed it had struck a deal to acquire Ingram Micro from Chinese holding company HNA Technology, following months of speculation that a deal was underway.
HNA Group's Tianjin Tianhai bought Ingram in 2016 for US$6 billion. However, HNA Group has weathered financial troubles in recent years, declaring bankruptcy in early 2021 after a creditor filed an application for the initiation of a reorganisation procedure against the company – no doubt a major factor behind the decision to sell off the distribution business.
Now, following the closure of the Platinum Equity deal, Ingram Micro’s owner resides in the same state as the distributor’s longtime global headquarters, California, where it was founded in 1979.
The Platinum Equity buy includes US$5.9 billion of equity value. In a statement, the private equity firm noted that Ingram Micro made US$49 billion in revenue for fiscal year 2020 – a decent increase from the US$47 billion in revenue it made in the 2019 fiscal year.
As previously reported, Ingram Micro CEO Alain Monié will continue to lead the distributor with headquarters remaining in Irvine, California.
“In addition to its core distribution business, Ingram has built strong capabilities in logistics services and cloud and hybrid cloud solutions,” said Platinum Equity managing director Matt Louie. “The company has built those businesses methodically through a combination of organic and acquisitive investment. We expect to accelerate those efforts and aim for an even higher growth trajectory.”
Additionally, Platinum Equity chairman and CEO Tom Gores said: "As the largest technology distributor in the world, Ingram Micro plays a vital role helping companies innovate and adapt, which is especially important now as we continue to emerge from the pandemic.
“Corporate IT priorities are shifting, e-commerce is thriving, and the pace of digitisation continues to accelerate, which makes the technology products, services and advanced solutions the company provides more important than ever.
“We are excited to put our resources and experience to work helping Ingram Micro navigate these especially fluid times,” he added.
According to Platinum Equity partner Jacob Kotzubei, whose team has led multiple technology transactions, including the firm’s investment in Vertiv, the acquisition is the culmination of more than a decade investing in the technology and IT distribution space.
“We know the industry well and our team is ready to hit the ground running to support Alain and the company’s leadership group. With a strong balance sheet and access to Platinum’s financial and operational resources, Ingram Micro has a lot of attractive opportunities ahead,” he said.
