Exterro acquires Zapproved, combining two Oregon-based legal tech companies

Beaverton, Ore.-based legal tech company Exterro said it has acquired Zapproved, a Portland, Ore.-based software platform that helps corporate lawyers sort through and analyze data.

The companies did not disclose the terms, but the deal is reportedly worth “hundreds of millions” of dollars. Zapproved, which raised $15 million in 2015 from K1 Investment Management ranked No. 92 on the GeekWire 200, our list of top privately-held Pacific Northwest startups.

Roughly all of Zapproved’s 130 executives and employees will carry over to Exterro, including CEO Monica Enand, who founded Zapproved in 2008, LawSites reported. The combined headcount will be 750.

Founded in 2008, Zapproved sells e-discovery software to more than 350 corporate legal teams. Vista Equity Partners, which acquired a majority stake in Zapproved in 2017, will keep a minority stake following the acquisition.

Exterro, which also sells legal software for e-discovery, is a portfolio company of Leeds Equity Partners. The New York-based private equity firm first invested in the startup in 2018, funneling more than $100 million into Exterro to take a majority stake. Exterro is eyeing an IPO for 2024, Reuters reported.

In June, Exterro secured new capital from Coller Capital and Glendower Capital, in part to find companies to acquire. The equity round valued Exterro at more than $1 billion, making it one of just a few unicorn companies in Oregon.