MasterCard is to pay $600 million to acquire Big Data analytics outfit Applied Predictive Technologies.
Founded in 1999, APT harnesses analytics to design, measure and calibrate marketing, merchandising, operations and capital initiatives for customers.
With offices in Washington, San Francisco, London, Bentonville, Ark., Taipei, Tokyo and Sydney, APT's cloud-based Test & Learn platform is in deployment at a host of big ticket retailers and manufacturing firms worldwide.
Goldman Sachs merchant banking division invested $100 million in the company in 2013 and it previously received financing from Accel-KKR.
The acquisition advances MasterCard’s agenda to deliver differentiated services to merchants, complementing its recent acquisition of 5One, a London-based retail consulting and analytics firm.
As part of the company’s services portfolio, APT will now have access to MasterCard’s analytics suite, consulting capabilities, marketing services and global footprint.
Kevin Stanton, president of MasterCard Advisors, says: “APT’s world-class talent, technology and Test & Learn platform, matched with MasterCard’s analytics, will give our customers the advantage of enhanced and actionable decision making.”
The transaction is anticipated to close in the second quarter of 2015.