SoftBank looks to buy stake in software maker Icertis at US$5b valuation: sources

[MUMBAI] SoftBank Group is nearing a deal to buy a stake in technology unicorn Icertis, valuing the enterprise software maker at about US$5 billion, according to people familiar with the matter.

The Japanese investor will pay about US$80 million for the stake owned by Fidelity-backed Eight Roads Ventures, the people said, asking not to be identified as the information isn't public. SoftBank is also looking to further raise its holdings in Icertis, the people said.

Icertis, which is based in Bellevue, Washington and has operations in India, is planning a potential initial public offering in the US as early as next year, the people said. It was valued at about US$2.8 billion in March when it secured US$80 million in a Series F funding round led by B Capital Group, according to a statement at the time.

Deliberations are ongoing and there's no certainty the transaction will go through, the people said. Representatives for SoftBank and Eight Roads Ventures India declined to comment, while Icertis didn't immediately respond to requests for comment.

Fidelity Growth Partners India led Icertis' US$6 million Series A funding round in 2015, along with Greycroft Partners, the software maker announced at the time. Fidelity Growth Partners was renamed Eight Roads Ventures shortly after.

Icertis is seeking to compete with giants such as SAP and Oracle to help businesses manage contracts in the cloud. Freshworks, a startup founded in India, raised about US$1 billion in a US IPO in September. Icertis says it helps customers worldwide manage over 10 million contracts, which have a total value of more than US$1 trillion, according to its website.

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