Silver Lake
Global technology-focused PE firm with $100B+ AUM. Specializes in large-cap tech buyouts and growth investments
Brands Owned by Silver Lake (5)
Ancestry.com
Software & SaaS · 0 locations
Silver Lake and Permira took Ancestry.com private for $1.6B in 2012. Sold to Blackstone for $4.7B in 2020. Ancestry raised subscription prices and faced privacy criticism for its DNA database practices and law enforcement cooperation policies during PE ownership.
Dell Technologies (Silver Lake / MSD)
Electronics & Tech Retail · 0 locations
Silver Lake and Michael Dell took Dell private for $24.9B in 2013 — the largest tech LBO in history at the time. The deal saddled Dell with $15B+ in debt. Dell went public again in 2018. Employees reported significant headcount reductions and benefit cuts during the private period.
Endeavor Group (WME / IMG)
Media & Digital Publishing · 0 locations
Silver Lake invested heavily in Endeavor Group (parent of WME talent agency and IMG sports marketing) starting in 2012, ultimately owning 18%+. Endeavor went public in 2021. The acquisition of UFC in 2016 for $4B (with KKR and MSD) is part of the Endeavor umbrella.
Qualtrics
Software & SaaS · 0 locations
Silver Lake led a $7.5B take-private of Qualtrics (experience management software) from SAP in 2023, partnering with Canada Pension Plan. Qualtrics had been acquired by SAP for $8B in 2019. The deal illustrates the revolving-door PE model in enterprise software.
SolarWinds (Silver Lake co-invest)
Software & SaaS · 0 locations
Silver Lake co-invested with Thoma Bravo in the $4.5B take-private of SolarWinds in 2016. Silver Lake sold its stake after SolarWinds re-IPO'd in 2018. Both firms faced scrutiny after the 2020 Orion supply-chain hack compromised U.S. government systems.