Blue Prism, officially Blue Prism Group plc, is a British multinational software corporation that makes enterprise robotic process automation (RPA) software, business process management (BPM) Software, and provides AI services. In March 2022, Blue Prism was acquired by SS&C Technologies.[2] It is headquartered in Warrington, UK.[3][4] The company was listed on the London Stock Exchange AIM market until its acquisition.[5]
Blue Prism was founded in 2001 by Alastair Bathgate and David Moss.[6] The company's focus was back office robotic process automation, or RPA.[7] The company launched its first commercial product, Automate, in 2003.[citation needed]
On 18 March 2016, Blue Prism undertook an IPO when the company floated on the London Stock Exchange AIM market with a market capitalisation of £48.5 million.[5][8] The company's shares rose 44 percent on the first day of trading on AIM, under CEO Alastair Bathgate.[9] By November 2016, it had offices in Chicago and Miami, as well as the United Kingdom.[10]
On 6 January 2017 Blue Prism announced it would open new offices in Austin, Texas, while remaining based in London. At the time, it employed 86 people worldwide.[11] In March 2017, a group of shareholders sold stakes in Blue Prism.[12]
In 2019, Blue Prism announced changes to its platform and the issuing of new stock. It included a new AI engine, an updated marketplace for extensions, and a new lab for in-house AI innovation.[13] In the summer of 2019, Blue Prism acquired Thoughtonomy for $100 million.[14]
As of April 2020, the leadership team is made up of chairman and CEO Jason Kingdon and co-founder and CTO David Moss.[8][15] Kingdon, an early investor in the company, became chairman in 2008 and led the company until its successful IPO in 2016. Kingdon returned as chairman in 2019[16][17] and became CEO in April 2020 when former CEO Alastair Bathgate stepped down,[15] Kingdon remained CEO until March 2022, when SS&C Technologies completed its acquisition of Blue Prism.[18]
In September 2021, it was announced that Vista Equity Partners would acquire Blue Prism for £1.095 billion ($1.5 billion) with the intention to merge it into TIBCO Software.[19][20] However, a bidding war between SS&C and Vista Equity ensued.[21] Shareholders ultimately voted in favor of SS&C. On 16 March 2022 SS&C Technologies announced it had completed its acquisition of Blue Prism for approximately $1.6 billion (£1.25 billion).[22][23]
£141.4 million (2020)[1]