In a move to bolster its suite of services for corporate clients, Nasdaq, Inc., owner and operator of the NASDAQ Stock Market, has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire news distribution service provider
.
Founded as Internet Wire more than 30 years ago, and with a current portfolio of over 8,500 clients, Marketwired’s Chicago offices are located on 101 N. Wacker Drive. The company has developed a sophisticated suite of social media targeting and analytics tools to help marketers reach the right audiences.
Combined with the reach of its GlobeNewswire service, Nasdaq aims to leverage these tools to become the leading distributor of news releases worldwide.
"There is a natural fit between the two organizations in terms of our long-term strategy and shared values based around innovation and customer centricity," said Marketwired president and CEO Adnan Ahmed in a statement. "We are excited about the benefits this combination will provide to Marketwired clients through a broader global distribution network, a comprehensive end-to-end workflow solution, and improved customer service."
The deal will be funded through a mix of debt and cash, and is expected to close during the first quarter of 2016. The terms of the deal were not disclosed.
"This transaction is a testament to our commitment to growing this business and delivering the most innovative communications tools and intelligence to our Corporate Solutions clients across the investor relations and public relations solutions suite," said Nasdaq’s president and COO Adena Friedman in a statement. "As our clients' needs continue to expand, we will be well-positioned to offer new tools, content, and services to meet their evolving IR and PR challenges and opportunities."
Launched in 1971, NASDAQ was the world’s first electronic stock market, and is home to more than 3,700 companies with a combined value of approximately $9.6 trillion. Its technology is used to run marketplaces in over 50 countries around the world.
In recent years, Nasdaq, which also operates stock markets in Scandinavia and Eastern Europe, has sought to become a provider of a broader range of services, including market surveillance as well as internal and external communications.
Image via Shutterstock.
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