Thoma Bravo-backed Proofpoint to Acquire Hornetsecurity for $1.6B; Goldman Sachs Leads First and Second Lien Financing  

Reporting: Paola Aurisicchio, Maryna Irkliyenko
Thoma Bravo-backed cybersecurity company Proofpoint has struck a deal to buy Germany-based cloud solutions security business Hornetsecurity for around $1.6 billion dollars, according to sources.

The deal has been signed and is expected to be announced on Thursday (May 15), said the sources.

Goldman Sachs is the lead lender on the deal providing about a $1.6 billion debt financing package to back the acquisition of Hornetsecurity and partially refinance Proofpoint’s existing debt.

The debt package includes a $444 million first-lien term loan underwritten by Goldman Sachs and a $1.2 billion second-lien loan led by the private credit arm of Goldman Sachs, lending alongside other debt funds, the sources said.

Antares, Apollo and Ares are among the several BDCs that lent to Proofpoint. A list of Proofpoint’ BDC creditors can be found in Octus’ BDC Database HERE.

California-based Proofpoint offers software as a service and products to protect organizations from advanced threats and compliance risks. The cyber company has been a portfolio company of software-focus private equity firm Thoma Bravo since 2021, when it was acquired in a deal worth $12.3 billion.

The company has $4.67 billion in debt, according to two sources. Octus reported that in January Proofpoint launched a $1 billion incremental first lien term loan coming in at SOFR+325-350bps with an 99.75 OID. Proceeds from the loan maturing in 2028 were used to fund a shareholder distribution. Goldman Sachs is lead left on the loan.

Hornetsecurity is backed by investment firms TA Associates, PSG Equity and Verdane. It is a German-headquartered provider of cloud-based security, compliance, backup, and security awareness solutions for companies across the world. The company, which operates in more than 120 countries, recently acquired French email security provider Altospam, according to an announcement.

Golub Capital is among the lenders to the Hornetsecurity via its several business development companies, according to Octus BDC database. The lender holds a portion of a unitranche to the company priced at Euribor+475bps and maturing in February 2031.

Octus has recently published a market analysis on cybersecurity software companies that can be seen HERE.

Thoma Bravo and Goldman Sachs declined to comment. TA Associates, PSG Equity and Verdane did not respond by publication time.