Certify announces merger to create $1B company

Certify, the Portland-based pioneer in cloud-based expense management software, has announced that it is merging with Chrome Rive, a California-based provider of enterprise-level software. The merger will create a company worth more than $1 billion.

The deal was announced Tuesday. Financial details were not disclosed.

Bob Neveu, Certify’s CEO, spoke with Maine Startups Insider about the transaction. From a strategic perspective, a merger with Chrome River broadens the spectrum of customers in the expense management space the company can serve, he said. While Certify is one of the dominant players in expense management software when it comes to small and medium-size businesses, Chrome River provides expense report and invoice automation software to medium to large global companies. For example, it counts Exxon-Mobil as a customer, Neveu said.

“When we think about buying expense management companies, we’re either buying for customers or for revenue or for geographic coverage,” Neveu said. “Chrome River has had tremendous success in the enterprise space. While we can point to customers in that category, it’s not our sweet spot. Chrome River really solves a gap in our offering in the enterprise global corporate space.”

The merger is the latest in a string of transactions that continues Certify’s strategy to go head-to-head with Concur, the largest enterprise-level expense-management software company, which is owned by SAP SE, Neveu said. The company in September acquired a Spanish company called Captio. The acquisitions have been funded by Certify’s parent company, K1 Investments, which acquired Certify in the summer of 2017 for $100 million. K1 is now majority owner of Chrome River.

With this merger, Certify and Chrome River will have more than 11,000 combined customers across more than 100 countries.

The market for travel and expense management software is growing at a strong pace and is estimated to reach $2.7 billion by 2022, according to IDC, a market intelligence firm that tracks the IT and consumer technology industries.

A difference between this deal and Certify’s other recent acquisitions is that this transaction is being described as a merger of peers rather than a transaction. While K1 owns Certify and placed several other expense management companies that were in its portfolio under the Certify umbrella, albeit while retaining their individual brands, Chrome River will for now continue to operate independently, according to Neveu. Though the companies will collaborate on accelerating investments in areas such as machine learning, artificial intelligence, analytics and reporting, which could improve their ability to serve customers with enhanced travel, expense, and invoice management capabilities.

When asked whether Certify and K1 will look to make any further acquisitions, he was unequivocal.

“We’re not done,” Neveu said.

Since its founding, Certify has grown beyond expense reporting and now occupies a larger space he describes as the “spend management,” which also encompasses software to support travel expenses and invoicing.

“We’re evolving into the spend managment space instead of just expense reporting,” he said. “As we expand there, it just gives us a broader umbrella to grow the business with organic and inorganic opportunities.”