Silver Lake, CPPIB near $12.4 billion deal to buy Qualtrics - sources

By Anirban Sen

NEW YORK (Reuters) - An investor consortium led by Silver Lake and Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) is in advanced talks to acquire Qualtrics International Inc in a deal that will value the customer survey software maker at about $12.4 billion, people familiar with the matter said on Sunday.

The deal, this year's biggest buyout led by private equity so far, comes after Qualtrics's controlling shareholder, German software giant SAP SE, decided that the consortium's $18.15-per-share offer was the best it could secure, the sources said.

An agreement could be announced as soon as this week, the sources said, requesting anonymity because the discussions were confidential.

Qualtrics declined to comment. CPPIB and private equity firm Silver Lake did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Qualtrics said earlier this month it would negotiate on an exclusive basis with Silver Lake and CPPIB until March 15 to see whether a deal could be finalized.

Financing for large leveraged buyouts has been tough to put together over the past year as debt has become more expensive and less available amid high interest rates and concerns about a potential economic slowdown.

Silver Lake currently holds a 4.1% stake in Qualtrics.

In 2018, SAP bought Qualtrics for $8 billion and three years later listed it in New York.

(Reporting by Anirban Sen in New York; Editing by Bradley Perrett)