Dropbox snaps up Hellosign in $200m deal

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In an effort to expand the capabilities of its cloud storage platform, Dropbox has announced that it has acquired the electronic signature startup Hellosign for $230m in cash.

The acquisition expands the company's technical abilities while also allowing it to better compete with Adobe and DocuSign in the electronic signatures space as well as with Apple, Google and Microsoft.

Dropbox, which went public last year, has managed to exceed analyst estimates in each of its first three quarterly earnings reports though it stock price has not grown significantly since its IPO last March.

HelloSign allows users to sign documents digitally and request signatures from others. The company's technology, which can be embedded in third party software, is currently available in products from Google, Salesforce and Dropbox. HelloSign also offers tools for faxing documents digitally and managing the flow of paperwork but according to its COO Whitney Bouck, its signature tool is the most popular.

eSignature capabilities

Dropbox's Co-Founder and CEO Drew Houston explained the reasoning behind its decision to purchase HelloSign in a statement, saying:

“With over an exabyte of data on our platform, millions of people already use Dropbox as a place to collaborate on their most important content. We’re thrilled to welcome HelloSign’s talented team to Dropbox and add their capabilities to our product suite. HelloSign has built a thriving business focused on eSignature and document workflow products that their users love. Together, we can deliver an even better experience to Dropbox users, simplify their workflows, and expand the market we serve.” 

For the time being, HelloSign will operate as an independent business with its CEO Joseph Walla reporting directly to Dropbox's SVP of engineering Quentin Clark.

Dropbox's sales team will focus on drumming up more business for HelloSign while Dropbox will continue to work with other electronic signature providers.

Via CNBC

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