Merger for Testing Firms AB Tasty and Wingify / VWO

Software firms AB Tasty and Wingify are to merge, under the aegis of private equity firm Everstone Capital, to create a digital experience optimisation platform, offering AI-led experimentation, real-time adaptive personalisation, behavioural insights and analytics.

AB Tasty is headquartered in Paris and was founded in 2013. The firm helps client to validate ideas through 'controlled experimentation', and personalize experiences to maximise impact and minimise risk. Wingify's flagship solution is VWO, a name by which the company is also known. Similar to AB Tasty, its platform helps businesses test different versions of their websites to improve sales and customer engagement.

The deal, which is subject to customary closing conditions, was steered by Singapore-based Everstone Capital, the private equity arm of tech investor the Everstone Group and already owner of a controlling stake in Wingify/VWO, which it bought for $200m around a year ago. Everstone Capital is investing 'significant' additional sums to remain the largest institutional shareholder in the combined entity.

The new firm, headquartered in New Delhi, will have ARR above $100m, from more than 4,000 customers globally, eleven offices and distributed teams across North America, LATAM, Europe and APAC. Sparsh Gupta (pictured), co-founder and CEO of VWO / Wingify, will serve as CEO, while Wingify co-founder Ankit Jain becomes Chief Product and Technology Officer; AB Tasty co-founders Rémi Aubert and Alix de Sagazan will become Chief Customer and Strategy Officer, and Chief Revenue Officer, respectively.

Gupta says AB Tasty 'shares [his company's] philosophy and complements it strongly in product and organization capabilities, while having a strong alignment in culture, vision, and mission.' Alix de Sagazan, Co-CEO of AB Tasty, adds: 'Our ambition has always been to create a global leader in experimentation and experience optimisation that delivers tangible, measurable value to customers... This combination gives us the opportunity to pursue the same ambition we've always had, but at a much greater scale and significantly expanded resources.'

According to Everstone Capital MD Sandeep Singh, the combined company 'will have among the most comprehensive product offerings in the category and a well-balanced geographical footprint with a leading market share in multiple major regions.' Everstone will also support the company with an advisory board including 'leading industry experts and operators', and will invest in unifying the platform and building its AI capabilities.

AB Tasty was advised in the deal by GP Bullhound

Web sites: www.wingify.com and www.abtasty.com .

All articles 2006-23 written and edited by Mel Crowther and/or Nick Thomas, 2024- by Nick Thomas, unless otherwise stated.