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Salesforce agrees to acquire customer engagement platform Braze

Salesforce agrees to acquire customer engagement platform Braze

Money Moves

$5.66 billion all-cash deal would fold Braze's real-time marketing engine into Salesforce's Marketing Cloud

October 23rd, 2026: Salesforce shares slide about 2% on deal cost

Overview

Updated Oct 26

Salesforce agreed on October 20 to buy Braze for about $5.66 billion in cash, or $47.50 a share, a 58% premium to where the stock closed the day before. Braze shares jumped 51.7% to $45.57 on the news and have traded above $45 since.

Braze's board backed the deal unanimously, and a majority of its Class A shares must still vote yes before regulators review it. Salesforce shares traded at $245.13 on October 23, down about 2%, as investors weighed what the cash purchase would return. Salesforce expects to close in its fiscal 2028, which runs from February 2027 to January 2028.

Why it matters

Braze lets brands respond to customers in the moment they act. Owning it puts Salesforce at the center of how major brands communicate.

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Key Indicators

$5.66 billion
Deal value
Enterprise value of the acquisition, announced October 20, 2026.
$47.50
Per-share cash price
Braze Class A shareholders receive $47.50 per share in cash.
58%
Premium over Monday close
Braze stock closed at $30.04 on Monday before the deal was announced.
2,770
Braze customers
Approximate count in the merger announcement; Braze reported 2,789 as of July 31, 2026.
$910 million
Braze expected sales this fiscal year
Guidance of $910 million to $913 million; revenue rose 26% to $227.2 million in the three months to July.
$245.13
Salesforce share price
Traded at that level at 11:40 a.m. ET on October 23, down about 2% as investors weighed the $5.66 billion cash cost.

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People Involved

Bill Magnuson
Bill Magnuson
Co-founder of Braze
Pledged to vote shares in favor of the acquisition
 Jon Hyman
Jon Hyman
Co-founder and chief technology officer of Braze
Pledged shares to vote for the merger; sold 285,000 shares on October 20 under a trading plan adopted in April

Organizations Involved

Salesforce, Inc.
Salesforce, Inc.
Enterprise software company
Acquirer

Salesforce is a customer relationship management company based in San Francisco.
Braze
Braze
Technology company
Acquisition target

Braze is a customer engagement platform based in New York.

Timeline

4 events Latest: October 23rd, 2026 · 3 weeks ago
Tap a bar to jump to that date

  1. Salesforce shares slide about 2% on deal cost

    Latest Market

    Salesforce traded at $245.13 at 11:40 a.m. ET, down about 2%, as investors questioned how much cash the $5.66 billion purchase would eventually return. Braze held above $45 for a third straight session.

  2. Salesforce announces Braze acquisition

    Deal

    Deal announced October 20. Braze shares closed 51.7% higher at $45.57; Salesforce shares slipped about 1%.

  3. Braze CTO sells shares under pre-set plan

    Filing

    Co-founder and chief technology officer Jon Hyman sold 285,000 Class A shares at a weighted average of $45.33, and 10,000 shares on October 15 at $30.04, under a trading plan adopted April 14, 2026. The sales totaled about $13.2 million.

  4. Salesforce and Braze sign merger agreement

    Deal

    Companies sign definitive merger agreement at $47.50 per share in cash.

Scenarios

1

Salesforce closes Braze acquisition

Likely Resolves by Apr 16, 2028

Discussed by: Both companies; deal includes signed merger agreement and shareholder voting pledges

Braze shareholders vote in favor, U.S. antitrust review clears, and the deal closes by early 2028. Co-founders and other holders controlling about 5% of shares pledged yes, and the 58% premium gives most investors little reason to vote no.

2

Regulators block or restructure the deal

Unlikely Resolves by Oct 19, 2027

Discussed by: Antitrust observers; the Hart-Scott-Rodino Act waiting period must expire before closing

The U.S. antitrust waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Act, which gives regulators time to review large deals, must end before the merger can close. Federal Trade Commission or Department of Justice staff could open a deeper review, extend the timeline, or file suit to block the combination.

3

Deal terminates, breakup fee paid

Unlikely Resolves by Oct 19, 2027

Discussed by: Merger agreement terms; either side can walk before the outside date of October 19, 2027

Braze shareholders vote no, a material adverse change occurs, or either party terminates before the outside date. The agreement sets a $300 million fee from Salesforce or $191.39 million from Braze depending on who walks.

Historical Context

2 moments from history that rhyme with this story — and how they unfolded.

June 2013

Salesforce acquires ExactTarget (2013)

Salesforce bought ExactTarget, an email marketing company, for about $2.5 billion. The purchase became the foundation of what is now Salesforce Marketing Cloud.

Then

Salesforce gained a large email marketing customer base and cross-channel marketing tools.

Now

Founded the template of Salesforce buying marketing technology at a premium and folding it into its CRM suite.

Why this matters now

This is the same playbook applied to real-time engagement: buy the category leader, pay a premium, integrate into Marketing Cloud.

2018

Adobe acquires Marketo (2018)

Adobe bought Marketo, a marketing automation company, for about $4.75 billion. Marketo was a standalone platform that competed with Adobe's own marketing tools.

Then

Adobe folded Marketo into its Experience Cloud, absorbing thousands of enterprise marketing customers.

Now

Consolidated marketing software among a few large vendors and reduced the number of independent platforms.

Why this matters now

Marketo was the standalone marketing platform absorbed by a large vendor; Braze is the standalone engagement platform following the same path.

Sources

(17)
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