Nasdaq acquires Dutch software company BWise

NASDAQ OMX Group Inc. (NASDAQ: NDAQ) has acquired Dutch software company BWise. BWise develops software for risk management, governance and compliance for mostly listed companies. The company has offices in the Netherlands, Germany, France, the United States and the United Kingdom.

The governance, risk management and compliance (GRC) platform of BWise will be available through NASDAQ OMX Corporate Solutions, a software technology business dedicated to helping public and private companies minimize risk, maximize efficiency and increase transparency with a suite of governance, investor relations and public relations products.

CEO Robert Pijselman and founder and CTO Luc Brandts of BWise have sold a part of their shares and continue to lead the company. The remaining shares will later be transferred trough an earnout structure. Co-shareholder Avedon Capital, a subsidiary of NIBC, has sold its entire equity shares. The acquisition price has not been disclosed.

Robert Pijselman, CEO of BWise: "The acquisition by NASDAQ provides us with unique opportunities we did not want to miss. The reputation of NASDAQ linked to the financial resources at their disposal will allow the company to grow significantly. The acquisition process was extremely complex and the interests were huge, but the expert team has worked hard, what finally led to this excellent result. All this in a very short time. Looking back, I would opt for the same team again."

CMS Derks Star Busmann Amsterdam (Martika Jonk), Arthur's Legal Amsterdam (Arthur van der Wees), and Hughes Hubbard & Reed LLP, New York (Jan JH Joosten) respectively advised Pijselman and Brandts, their holding and BWise on the sale. Houthoff Buruma Rotterdam (B. Caudri) acted on behalf of NIBC; NautaDutilh New York (Ruud Smits) on behalf of NASDAQ.