Duolingo backer in £802m raid on London-listed training company

An educational training company is joining the exodus from the London stock exchange after agreeing to an £802m takeover by US private equity firm General Atlantic.

General Atlantic, which has a stake in the language-learning app Duolingo, is buying Learning Technologies Group (LTG) for £802.4m in a gamble on rising training requirements for large corporations as they adapt to artificial intelligence.

LTG, which provides corporate training tools including mobile apps and videos, has been faltering amid the rapid evolution of generative AI and companies turning away from custom content creation to reduce costs.

General Atlantic said LTG would require further investments in its products to adapt to the changing landscape and compete, as well as offset the potentially disruptive impact of AI.

General Atlantic already has educational technology companies in its portfolio beyond Duolingo, such as India-based Unacademy, and gamified learning platform Kahoot!.

Shares in LTG rose as much as 7% following the announcement, hitting their highest point since June 2023. The company said in September it was willing to agree to a deal with General Atlantic if the private equity firm made a formal offer.

Under the deal, LTG shareholders will receive 100p per share in cash, a 34% premium on the stock’s closing price on 26 September, the day before General Atlantic’s interest became public.

The deal joins a flurry of merger and acquisition activity in Britain as interest rates fall and equity markets hold firm.

LTG joins a growing number of firms being delisted from the London stock exchange – an exodus that has sparked concern among politicians and business leaders.

Last week, the car parts supplier TI Fluid Systems agreed to a £1.04bn takeover by Canada’s ABC Technologies, while the cafe bar business Loungers succumbed to a £338m bid from the US private equity company Fortress Investment Group, and the Australian asset manager Macquarie struck a £700m deal to buy the waste management business Renewi. Aviva’s attempt to buy smaller rival Direct Line for £3.3bn was also rebuffed last week.

LTG said its independent directors intended to unanimously recommend the deal to shareholders.