Citrix Systems, Inc., today announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Wrike, a rapidly growing, recognized leader in the SaaS collaborative work management space, for $2.25 billion in cash.

The combination will bring together Citrix’s powerful digital work platform, which securely delivers the resources an employee needs to be productive in one unified experience, and Wrike’s innovative work management solution, which streamlines collaboration and work execution, providing employees with additional tools to work efficiently and securely wherever they may be.

The addition of Wrike’s cloud-delivered capabilities will accelerate Citrix’s business model transition to the cloud and strategy to become a complete SaaS-based work platform addressing the needs of various functional groups within the enterprise.

The combined company will offer customers an enhanced value proposition through complementary solutions, unlocking new revenue opportunities both within existing installed customer bases and new lines of business buying centers, including marketing, professional services, and HR. Together, Citrix and Wrike will serve over 400,000 customers across 140 countries. In addition, upon closing, Wrike will gain access to Citrix’s robust ecosystem of partners, creating new opportunities within the ecosystem to drive additional value for customers.

Headquartered in San Jose, California, and employing more than 1 000 employees, Wrike, a Vista Equity Partners portfolio company, provides approximately 18 000 customers globally with solutions that empower teams and distributed workers to plan, manage and efficiently complete work at scale. Wrike is expected to have approximately 30 percent stand-alone growth to between $180 million and $190 million in unaudited SaaS annualized recurring revenue (ARR^[1]) in 2021, with the opportunity to accelerate growth over time under Citrix’s ownership.

Delivering the Future of Work

“Work today is happening everywhere – at home, in the office and on the road. We believe that in the future, success will go to those companies that can support flexible and hybrid work models and provide a consistent, secure and efficient experience that removes the complexity and noise from work so employees can focus and perform at their best, wherever they happen to be,” explained David Henshall, President and CEO, Citrix. “Together, Citrix and Wrike will deliver the solutions needed to power a cloud-delivered digital workspace experience that enables teams to securely access the resources and tools they need to collaborate and get work done in the most efficient and effective way possible across any channel, device or location,” he continued.

Expanding the Digital Workspace

Citrix provides a market-leading digital work platform from which companies can deliver unified, secure and reliable access to the systems, information and tools people need to get work done wherever they may be working. With the addition of Wrike’s offerings, Citrix will expand its platform to include new, collaborative work management capabilities that enable companies to simplify work execution and boost employee effectiveness and productivity by automating and streamlining team collaboration as well as unifying workflows across all employees and work styles.

“When it comes to the future of work, Citrix and Wrike share a common vision and mission: to reduce the complexity and chaos of work and empower every person, team, and organization to achieve their very best. Together, we will unlock the workspace of the future, truly transforming the work experience and equipping people with an innovative set of solutions they can use to exceed goals and keep business moving forward,” added Andrew Filev, Founder and CEO, Wrike.

Citrix expects to fund the transaction with a combination of new debt and existing cash and investments. Citrix is committed to its investment grade credit ratings and plans to return to historical leverage levels within 24 months. Citrix has obtained a commitment from JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. for a $1.45 billion senior unsecured 364-day bridge loan facility.

The transaction, which has been unanimously approved by the board of directors of both Citrix and Wrike, is expected to close in the first half of 2021, subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions. Until close, the companies will continue to operate independently. Upon closing, Filev will continue to lead the Wrike team and report to Arlen Shenkman, EVP and Chief Financial Officer, Citrix.