Swedish private equity firm EQT has agreed to acquire Remember & Company, which operates the Korean business card management app Remember.

The deal will see EQT become the largest shareholder by purchasing shares from Arc & Partners, the previous majority owner.

Remember, which claims 5 million users, provides business card management, career management, and corporate solutions that use AI for talent acquisition and customer discovery.

Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

EQT said it was attracted by Remember’s data assets and use of AI in HR technology.

Both companies indicated plans to accelerate Remember’s business growth and expand in Asia following the acquisition.

🔗 Source: ChosunBiz

🧠 Food for thought

1️⃣ Private equity drives consolidation wave in fragmented HR tech market

EQT’s $400 million acquisition of Remember highlights a trend of consolidation reshaping the HR technology landscape.

Major players have been acquiring smaller platforms to build comprehensive solutions, with deals like Recruit Holdings’ $1.2 billion purchase of Glassdoor in 2018 and Ultimate Software’s $11 billion acquisition reflecting this trend1.

The HR tech sector saw over $3.2 billion in venture capital funding in just the first half of 2019, representing a 60% increase from the previous year’s total2.

This consolidation makes business sense given the market’s fragmented nature, as companies prefer integrated platforms over managing multiple point solutions for recruitment, performance management, and employee engagement.

Remember’s evolution from a business card app to a comprehensive HR platform with 5 million users and 10,000 enterprise clients demonstrates how companies can expand their market reach through feature expansion3.

2️⃣ Corporate spending surge reflects strategic shift in HR technology priorities

The Remember acquisition aligns with a change in how organizations view HR technology investments, moving from cost centers to strategic growth drivers.