Twilio plans to buy customer data start-up in $3.2b deal

The deal is expected to be partially based on Twilio stock

American cloud communications firm Twilio intends to acquire San Francisco-based customer data infrastructure firm Segment for $3.2 billion, says Forbes.

The deal, which had not been finalised until Friday last week, could be officially announced today. It is expected to be partially based on Twilio stock, Forbes claimed.

One source told the publication that Segment had recently been open to buyout offers.

Cloud customer data firm Segment is known for its data platform, which enables businesses to gather data about a customer from multiple sources - like a website, CRM tool or customer service application - and present it in a single view.

The company was founded in 2012 and raised $175 million in a Series D round of funding last year, at a $1.5 billion valuation. Segment has more than 550 employees and over 20,000 customers, including FOX, Intuit and Levi's.

Twilio, which went public in June 2016, uses cloud computing, machine learning and mobile apps to enable businesses to engage with their customers. The firm specialises in creating APIs that companies can use to integrate communications into their own applications.

Twilio currently trades at a market capitalisation of more than $45 billion and its customers include Deliveroo, ING and American Red Cross.

Last week, Twilio said that its third-quarter revenue could be higher than its previous forecast of $401 - $406 million, as people continue to work from home amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

For the second quarter of 2020, ending 30th June, the company reported total revenue of $401 million, up 46 per cent year-over-year.