Deal is expected to close February 2026.
Salesforce has announced its intention to buy Informatica for approximately $8 billion, betting on the data management platform to sharpen its competitive edge in the booming artificial intelligence market.
The cloud-software giant shelved talks with Informatica last year, after the companies failed to reach agreement terms, and this deal would be another major aquisition for Salesforce after it purchased Slack Technologies in 2021 for just under US$21bn, and Tableau Software in 2019 for $15.7bn in stock.
The deal would support Salesforce expanding its data management tools as it focuses on AI-enabled products, and allow it to tighten control over how business data is managed and used, an essential step as it races to embed generative AI deeper into its products.
“Salesforce and Informatica will create the most complete, agent-ready data platform in the industry,” said Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff, adding the deal will strengthen its position in the $150 billion-plus data enterprise market.
The company has been offering AI agents – programs that can handle routine work without human supervision – to businesses for recruiting and customer service.
Salesforce is allegedly paying $25 for each share of Informatica, a premium of about 30% to Informatica’s closing price on 22 May 2025, the day before news of renewed talks emerged. Informatica shares were up 5.8% in afternoon trading at $23.86, while Salesforce was up 1.78%.
Salesforce expects to close the deal in early next fiscal year starting February through a mix of cash and new debt. The deal is expected to boost its operating margin from the second year after closing.
Scotiabank analysts said the move could help Salesforce catch-up with software rivals as “data management software is now most often sold as part of mega-vendor tool kits”.
This article contains forward-looking statements and should not be relied upon as a prediction of future-events nor for investment purposes.
