Raleigh-based Bandwidth buys Euro firm for $527M to fuel its international expansion

Raleigh tech firm Bandwidth Inc., which makes communications software that enables voice conferencing, is spending more than $500 million to buy a European firm that will give it coverage in more than 60 countries.

Bandwidth said Monday morning that it had come to an agreement to buy Brussels-based Voxbone, which offers services similar to Bandwidth. Its customers include Uber, Zoom and Skype, and the company has 200 employees spread across the world.

It’s the Raleigh company’s largest ever acquisition, and it will significantly expand the company’s geographic boundaries. Prior to the acquisition, Bandwidth had just begun building out infrastructure to expand into other countries, but its primary markets were still the U.S. and Canada, the company said.

“Today’s announcement accelerates our international strategy by several years,” Bandwidth CEO David Morken said in a statement. “Our current and future customers will benefit from using a unified software platform, network and team to serve people around the world.”

Bandwidth’s customers include Google, Microsoft and Zoom, who use its cloud-based voice and messaging technologies in a variety of products. The company posted revenue of $232.6 million in 2019, and is on pace to earn revenues near $290 million this year, according to its most recent financial filings.

Voxbone, in comparison, is expected to post revenue of more than $85 million this year.

Bandwidth plays an important role in the underpinnings of voice conferencing technology that has become critical during the coronavirus pandemic. When you dial into a Zoom conference or if you have a Google Voice number, Bandwidth is providing that phone number and connection that allows you to talk, as well as a variety of other services.

It’s a service that has allowed the company to chart aggressive growth in the past year.

In addition to spending 446 million euros, or $527 million, on Voxbone, Bandwidth said earlier this year that it plans to build a new headquarters in Raleigh and hire more than 1,100 new employees, The News & Observer previously reported.

The purchase of Bandwidth is expected to close by the end of the month, and Voxbone will begin operating under the Bandwidth name.

Original Article Source: News & Observer