Temenos looking for fresh interest from possible suitors – BBG

By Scott Kanowsky 

Investing.com — Shares in Temenos Group AG (SIX:) rose on Thursday after Bloomberg News reported that the Swiss software group has been seeking new expressions of interest from possible buyers following the collapse of takeover negotiations last year.

Citing unnamed sources familiar with the matter, the report said that the company is working with its advisors to evaluate the level of appetite potential suitors may have to put forward a bid. The people added that several private equity firms, including KKR & Co., Permira, Nordic Capital, Thoma Bravo, and EQT AB have all taken a look at the IT business.

Temenos, which specializes in providing software services to banks, has seen its share price slide by over 28% in the past one-year period. Activist investor Petrus Advisers has called for sweeping changes during that time, including recalibrated financial targets and a focus on boosting Temenos’s U.S. market share.

Earlier this year, the pressure led to the resignation of chief executive Max Chuard, who had been leading the firm’s transition into selling software-as-a-service. The strategy change has proved challenging, with Temenos recently posting a steep decline in profits.

Executive chair Andreas Andreades, meanwhile, will not stand for reelection at the company’s next annual general meeting. Sources told Bloomberg that he would still like to explore a sale before his departure.

Temenos declined to comment to Bloomberg.