Darktrace agrees £4.4bn takeover by Thoma Bravo

The London stock market has suffered a fresh blow, with Darktrace, one of its few significant listed technology companies, agreeing to be taken over by an American private equity firm for £4.4 billion in cash.

In a move seen by critics as fresh evidence that Britain has failed to properly value its technology companies, Thoma Bravo, the Chicago-based buyout firm, has agreed a bid at $7.75, or 620p, per share.

News of the bid prompted an immediate jump in Darktrace’s share price, which closed 16.4 per cent, or 85p, up at 602p last night. The offer has been pitched at a 44 per cent premium to the company’s average price over the past three months. It is also 148 per cent higher than the 250p