Infor and Golden Gate Capital acquire Lawson Software

GGC Software Holdings, Inc, an affiliate of Golden Gate Capital, and Infor, a provider of business software serving more than 70,000 customers, have completed their acquisition of Lawson Software, under the terms of the merger agreement disclosed on 26 April 2011, effective as of 5 July 2011. Pursuant to the terms of such merger agreement, Lawson’s stockholders (other than stockholders who have perfected their statutory rights of appraisal under Delaware law) will receive $11.25 per share in cash, without interest and less any applicable withholding taxes, for each share of common stock they owned immediately prior to the effective time of the merger.

Lawson is a global provider of business application software, maintenance and consulting to customers primarily in specific services, trade and manufacturing/distribution industries.The company has been combined with SoftBrands, Inc, an affiliate of Golden Gate Capital and Infor, with the new affiliation enabling Lawson/SoftBrands and Infor to share and integrate technology and partner on product offerings through cross-selling, marketing and distribution arrangements.

Pledging to deliver incremental value quickly to customers, the Infor and Lawson product development teams have begun integrating applications using Infor ION, an innovative interoperability architecture.

Under this development effort, first products targeted for release later this year are Lawson S3 and Infor FMS SunSystems Enterprise; Lawson S3 and Infor EAM; and Lawson Human Capital Management and Infor Workforce Management.

“These first product examples reflect the potential of this partnership and the fast pace of our development efforts,” said Charles Phillips, CEO of Infor. “We will continue our work to deliver deeper functionality and industry-specific applications, particularly in key industries such as manufacturing, healthcare, distribution, public sector and hospitality.”

In addition to Infor and Lawson’s complementary product portfolio, the companies also share a large base of common customers who present cross-sell opportunities. 9% of Lawson’s active customers also use Infor products, and 48% of Lawson’s top revenue customers use at least one Infor application.

“Infor EAM has helped us realise cost savings by substituting corrective maintenance with scheduled preventive maintenance activities,” said Stephen Sherman, GIS Manager, City of Greensboro, NC. “Integration with our Lawson S3 Financial Management System will further consolidate information and enable us to produce enhanced reports more quickly for senior management and state regulatory agencies.”

The combination of Infor Workforce Management with Lawson Human Capital Management can provide one system to manage all employee-related functions, including core HR, talent management, e-learning, time and attendance, and payroll. The integrated applications can improve operational decision-making capabilities and enable time-and-attendance data to feed directly into payroll.

As a result of the closing of the merger, shares of Lawson's common stock were delisted from NASDAQ as of the close of business on 5 July 2011 and will not open for trading on the First North exchange on 6 July 2011.