News Release

The Carlyle Group sells Eggplant to Keysight Technologies

2020-036

London, UK: 25 June 2020 - Global investment firm The Carlyle Group (NASDAQ: CG) today announced that it has sold Eggplant, a global digital test automation and monitoring software provider, to Keysight Technologies, Inc (NYSE: KEYS) for $330m.

Carlyle Europe Technology Partners III (CETP III) acquired Eggplant in 2016, recognising early the importance of software test automation for DevOps, an emerging trend for continuous software delivery where development and operations teams collaborate to build, test, deploy and monitor applications with speed, quality and control. With a differentiated technology, Eggplant was well positioned to become a leader in its segment through a focus on multi-platform capabilities, the end-user experience and business outcomes. Through continuous product innovation, including the first-to-market introduction of AI-driven test creation, investing in its go-to-market capabilities and expanding the management team, including the appointment of Dr John Bates as CEO, Eggplant has more than tripled revenue during CETP III’s ownership to become a recognised industry leader.

Dr John Bates, CEO of Eggplant, said: “Carlyle has been a valuable partner for Eggplant’s management team over the past 4 years, supporting the business to deliver strong growth and innovative customer solutions, as the business has established itself as an industry leader. We look forward to continuing to further build on our leadership position in the industry and support our customers as part of Keysight Technologies.”

Michael Wand, Managing Director and Co-Head of the CETP advisory team who led the transaction, said: “Eggplant is a great example of Carlyle’s ability to create value. Having identified Eggplant as a founder-owned business with substantial potential early in the cycle, we worked closely with its world-class management team to support and invest in the business, helping it to become a market leader in software development. We are confident that Eggplant will enjoy continued success in the future as part of Keysight Technologies.”    

Eggplant marks the sixth exit for CETP III, a 2014 vintage fund, and another exit for CETP’s infrastructure software practice, following deals such as Apama, UC4/Automic and ITRS.
 

ENDS

About Eggplant
Eggplant, the fastest growing automation provider, provides user-centric, intelligent testing and performance solutions designed to optimize the digital experience, delight customers, and drive business success. Only Eggplant enables  organizations  to test, monitor, analyze, and report on the quality and responsiveness of software applications across different interfaces, platforms, browsers, and devices, including mobile, IoT, desktop, and mainframe. Learn more at www.eggplantsoftware.com.

About The Carlyle Group
The Carlyle Group (NASDAQ: CG) is a global investment firm with deep industry expertise that deploys private capital across four business segments: Corporate Private Equity, Real Assets, Global Credit and Investment Solutions. With $217 billion of assets under management as of March 31, 2020, Carlyle’s purpose is to invest wisely and create value on behalf of its investors, portfolio companies and the communities in which we live and invest. The Carlyle Group employs more than 1,775 people in 32 offices across six continents. Further information is available at www.carlyle.com. Follow The Carlyle Group on Twitter @OneCarlyle.

Media contacts:
The Carlyle Group
Andrew Kenny
+44 7816 176120
andrew.kenny@carlyle.com