Canva holders are said to near expanded $US1.5b share sale

Australian software company Canva is close to completing a share sale that’s set to raise more than $US1.5 billion ($2.3b), according to people familiar with the matter.

The share sale by a group of investors including current and former employees of the privately held firm would value the company at about $US26b, the people said, roughly the same as in its previous round.

Canva is working with Goldman Sachs on the round, though it’s not raising new capital, they said.

Canva generated more than $US2b in annualised revenue in 2023, the people said, asking not to be identified as the information isn’t public.

Deliberations are ongoing and details may change, the people said. Representatives for Canva and Goldman Sachs declined to comment.

The round comes as Canva ramps up competition with Adobe, with both firms introducing artificial intelligence features last year. Adobe, long the dominant maker of software tools for graphics professionals, saw the implosion in December of a $US20b deal to acquire Figma, another rival.

Canva’s platform has gained popularity among smaller companies and gen Zs since its inception in 2013, and more recently sought to attract larger enterprise customers.

FedEx, Starbucks and Zoom Video Communications are among firms that have embraced its platform.

The all-in-one design product has 170 million monthly active users in 190 countries, according to the company. It counts backers including Franklin Templeton, Bessemer Venture Partners and Blackbird Ventures.

Bloomberg