Social networking company Facebook said it would buy mobile messaging company WhatsApp for about $16 billion in cash and stock.
Facebook said it would pay $4 billion in cash and about $12 billion in stock.
The deal also includes an additional $3 billion in restricted stock units to be granted to WhatsApp’s founders and employees that will vest over four years subsequent to closing.
Facebook said WhatsApp co-founder and chief executive Jan Koum would join Facebook's board.
According to WhatsApp, more than 450 million people use the service each month, with some 70 percent of those people active on a given day.
WhatsApp claims its messaging volume is approaching the entire global telecom SMS volume, with continued strong growth, adding more than 1 million new registered users per day.
WhatsApp co-founder and CEO Jan Koum said: “WhatsApp's extremely high user engagement and rapid growth are driven by the simple, powerful and instantaneous messaging capabilities we provide. We're excited and honored to partner with Mark [Zuckerberg] and Facebook as we continue to bring our product to more people around the world.”
Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg said: "WhatsApp is on a path to connect 1 billion people. The services that reach that milestone are all incredibly valuable. I've known Jan for a long time and I'm excited to partner with him and his team to make the world more open and connected."
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