Adobe’s $20B Figma acquisition highlights web-based collaboration tendencies
The money and inventory deal will see Figma change into a part of the broader Adobe ecosystem, including collaborative software program improvement to the design firm’s listing of capabilities.
Adobe introduced at the moment that it might pay $20 billion in money and inventory to amass Figma, a web-based collaborative design platform. Figma shall be folded into the bigger Adobe household of merchandise, and can proceed to function independently till the deal closes.
The $20 billion determine is a considerable step up in valuation for Figma, which was valued at $10 billion in its final funding spherical in 2021. The firm was based in 2012, and Adobe mentioned that it has since developed a devoted following amongst builders. Figma gives a wealthy vary of collaboration choices for joint software program improvement, in addition to the favored FigJam collaborative whiteboarding surroundings.
[ Digital whiteboards: The next must-have tool for hybrid teams? ]
“As creativity becomes increasingly collaborative, the web makes it easier for teams to create together,” mentioned David Wadhwani, Adobe government vp and chief enterprise officer for digital media, on the corporate’s third quarter earnings convention name. “Figma’s web-based, multiplayer platform can accelerate the delivery of Adobe’s Creative Cloud technologies on the web, making the creative process accessible to more people.”
It’s a possible coup for Adobe, based on IDC analysis vp of collaboration and communities Wayne Kurtzman. The development within the significance of visible collaboration is a key market issue for Adobe, and buying Figma is “exactly the right move,” he said.
“We are starting to see disruptive changes to the collaboration and workflow markets—and this is among them,” Kurtzman mentioned. “Their challenge is in not only enhancing their products with these abilities, but also to build on Figma’s vision of collaboration that made it of value in the first place.”
Adobe also emphasized the high profitability of Figma in its earnings call, praising the company for its expected addition of more than $200 million in net annual recurring revenue, pushing it over the $400 million mark by the end of fiscal 2022.
“With a total addressable market of [about] $16.5 billion by 2025, Figma is just getting started,” mentioned Wadhwani.
The deal, which has not but been accredited by Figma stockholders, remains to be topic to their approval and customary closing circumstances. About half of the overall worth shall be paid in Adobe inventory, with the rest to be paid in money. Adobe mentioned that it expects the transaction to shut someday in 2023.