Intuit Inc. announced today it has agreed to acquire email marketing firm Mailchimp Inc. for $12 billion in a cash and stock deal.

Acquisition talks were first reported Aug. 12. It was noted at the time that Mailchimp had received interest from private equity firms and “large technology firms.” On Aug. 31, one of those large technology firms was confirmed to be Intuit.

Typically a startup acquisition would involved a company founded in the last five to eight years, but Mailchimp is no startup. It was founded in 2001 in the ashes of the dot-com boom.

In its 20 years, Mailchimp has never raised venture capital funding. The company was bootstrapped from day one and, rare among tech startups, it managed to do so by being profitable.

Whereas Google is synonymous with search, Mailchimp is nearly synonymous with email marketing. Although best known for email distribution lists, the company expanded into broader marketing software over the years.

Today, some of Mailchimp’s offerings include software that allows online retailers to link the email service to their e-commerce websites and automatically send customers promotions at opportune moments. For new businesses, Mailchimp offers tools that they can use to create an online store from scratch and launch digital ad campaigns.

Coming into the acquisition, Mailchimp has 13 million users globally, 2.4 million monthly active users and more than 800,000 paying customers. In 2019, the company reported earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization of $300 million and said it was on track to reach annual revenue of $700 million.

With its acquisition of Mailchimp, Intuit aims for the two companies to deliver a vision of an end-to-end customer growth platform for small and midsized businesses.

“Together, Mailchimp and QuickBooks will become a powerful engine for small and mid-market business customers to get, engage and retain their customers, run their businesses, optimize cash flow and remain compliant,” Alex Chriss, executive vice president and general manager of Intuit small business and self-employed group, said in a statement.

The acquisition is expected to be finalized in Intuit’s fiscal second quarter, subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions.

Photo: Mailchimp