Bending Spoons Acquires Airtable for $1.285B — An 88% Collapse From Its $11.7B Peak

Deal Structure: Enterprise Value vs. Equity Value

The acquisition values Airtable at an enterprise value of $1.285 billion. Because Airtable carries a substantial net cash and cash equivalents balance (reportedly close to $1 billion), the implied equity value rises to approximately $2.25 billion . The cash stockpile — roughly half of the $1.4 billion Airtable raised across seven funding rounds — means Bending Spoons is effectively acquiring a strong balance sheet alongside the operating business .

Under the agreement, a wholly owned U.S. subsidiary of Bending Spoons will purchase 100% of Airtable's shares from Formagrid Holdings LLC. Both companies' boards unanimously approved the transaction . The deal is expected to close later in 2026 (second half of the year), subject to regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions .

Airtable's Valuation Collapse: From $11.7B to $1.285B

The $1.285 billion enterprise value represents an 88–89% decline from Airtable's peak pandemic-era valuation .

• December 2021 (Series F): Airtable raised its last primary round at an $11.7 billion valuation (some sources cite $11.6 billion), at the height of the zero-interest-rate boom .
• Early 2026 (secondary market): By January 2026, CEO Howie Liu acknowledged that secondary market trades implied a valuation of approximately $4 billion — a roughly 66% decline from the peak .
• August 2026 (acquisition): Bending Spoons' enterprise value of $1.285 billion represents about a 68% discount even to that lowered secondary-market level .

Caveat on valuation estimates: Airtable is a private company that does not officially disclose its revenue or recurring revenue figures . All ARR numbers reported here are third-party estimates from sources including company statements, analyst reports, and secondary market data. The secondary market range in mid-2026 was wide — some marks implied a valuation as low as $2.63 billion per share price — so the $4 billion figure cited by CEO Liu is the most commonly used benchmark .

Airtable's Current Financial Health: $480M ARR and Growing

Despite the valuation collapse, Airtable's business metrics show a company that is still growing:

• Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR): Approximately $480 million as of June 2026 . This is up from an estimated $375 million ARR in 2023 (50% YoY growth) and roughly $478 million in 2024 (≈27% YoY growth) .
• Growth rate: ARR is growing over 20% year-over-year as of mid-2026 .
• Customer base: Airtable serves more than 500,000 organizations, including 80% of the Fortune 100 .
• Cash flow positive: The company achieved cash flow positivity in late 2024 . CEO Liu stated in January 2026 that roughly half of the $1.4 billion raised remains in the bank and Airtable is "throwing off cash" .

Bending Spoons' Acquisition Portfolio

Bending Spoons, founded in 2013 in Milan and listed on Nasdaq in July 2026, has assembled a portfolio of more than 50 companies through a consistent playbook of acquiring and transforming digital businesses . The Airtable acquisition is its first since going public .

Notable Bending Spoons acquisitions include:

Sources:

Ten of these businesses — AOL, Brightcove, Eventbrite, Evernote, Harvest, Komoot, Remini, StreamYard, Vimeo, and WeTransfer — generated more than 80% of Bending Spoons' revenue in the first quarter of 2026 .

Key Deal Terms at a Glance

• Consideration: All-cash
• Enterprise value: $1.285 billion
• Implied equity value: ~$2.25 billion (including net cash and equivalents)
• Structure: Wholly owned U.S. subsidiary of Bending Spoons will buy 100% of Airtable shares from Formagrid Holdings LLC
• Board approval: Unanimous from both companies' boards
• Expected closing: Later in 2026, pending regulatory approvals
• Advisors: Specific financial or legal advisors were not named in available sources. This is Bending Spoons' first acquisition since its Nasdaq debut in July 2026

Why This Deal Matters

The Airtable acquisition is a landmark case study in how rising interest rates and SaaS multiple compression have reshaped the enterprise software landscape. A company that raised $1.4 billion and served 80% of the Fortune 100 sold for less than three times its annual recurring revenue — a dramatic fall from its pandemic-era peak but a price that reflects Bending Spoons' disciplined, cash-flow-focused acquisition strategy. Airtable was not a failing business; it was cash-flow positive and growing 20%+ when Bending Spoons bought it . The deal illustrates how even healthy private SaaS companies can face steep valuation resets when market sentiment shifts.