S&P Global acquired With Intelligence from Motive Partners for $1.8 billion in cash, marking the data giant's largest move into private markets intelligence infrastructure. The deal delivers S&P a network of 40,000 institutional subscribers across hedge funds, private equity, and credit, with annual revenue near $200 million at an implied 9x multiple.
With Intelligence built vertical-specific intelligence products for allocators who never open a Bloomberg terminal. The firm's 12 platforms cover real estate debt, infrastructure equity, private credit structuring, and CLO analytics—workflows that live outside traditional market data pipes. Motive Partners, which backed a management buyout in 2021, returns roughly 2.8x on deployed capital in under three years. The London-based intelligence provider employs 850 staff, most in editorial and product development, with zero overlap to S&P's existing Ratings or Indices divisions.
This acquisition answers a structural problem for S&P. The firm generates $11 billion annually from ratings, indices, and Platts energy data, but lacked native tooling for the $13 trillion private markets complex. With Intelligence's subscriber base skews toward firms managing $500 million to $5 billion—precisely the segment underserved by Capital IQ's enterprise pricing. The deal positions S&P to bundle private markets intel with its existing credit and index franchises, creating cross-sell leverage into family offices and emerging managers who need both public comps and private deal flow visibility. Motive Partners' exit timing reflects private equity's narrowing window to monetize B2B information assets before AI-native competitors compress margins. S&P pays for distribution and editorial moats, not technology.
Allocators should track S&P's integration playbook over the next 18 months. If the firm embeds With Intelligence data into Capital IQ or creates bundled subscription tiers, it signals a land-grab for the $2 billion private markets data segment that PitchBook and Preqin currently split. Family offices running hybrid public-private books may see pricing pressure as S&P leverages scale. Operators at mid-market GPs should watch for product updates in Q2 2025—S&P will likely push deeper verticalization in secondaries and continuation funds, areas where With Intelligence had nascent offerings.
The deal closes in Q3 2025, subject to standard regulatory clearance. S&P funds the purchase from existing credit facilities and expects $30 million in annual cost synergies by 2027, mostly from shared technology infrastructure and London office consolidation.