Kronos and Ultimate Software to Merge

Kronos Incorporated and Ultimate Software have entered into a definitive merger agreement to form one of the world’s largest cloud companies.

The all-stock merger has been unanimously approved by the boards of directors of both companies and is expected to close at the end of March.

Upon closing, the combined company will have revenues of approximately $3 billion, more than 12,000 employees worldwide, and an enterprise value of $22 billion, with further plans for growth including the addition of 3,000 employees over the next three years.

Aron Ain, Kronos CEO, will be the chief executive officer and chairman of the combined company, which will be jointly headquartered in Lowell, MA, and Weston, FL, with offices around the world.

Hellman & Friedman LLC, the controlling shareholder of both Kronos and Ultimate, will be the controlling shareholder of the newly formed company. Following H&F, private equity funds managed by Blackstone will be the largest minority investor, followed by GIC, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and JMI Equity.

Kronos is a provider of workforce management and human capital management cloud solutions, while Ultimate Software is a global provider of cloud human capital management and employee experience solutions.