The Blucora team ringing the opening bell on Nasdaq in 2012
The Blucora team ringing the opening bell on Nasdaq in 2012
John
John Clendening

In a move to further push into the financial-services sector, Belleuve-based Blucora announced today it has sold its InfoSpace search business for $45 million to email marketing company OpenMail.

Blucora — formerly known as InfoSpace — acquired tax preparation software maker TaxACT for $288 million in 2012 and bought Texas-based HD Vest for $580 million last October. Those acquisitions led to a change in focus to financial services. As part of that move, Blucora said it would sell both InfoSpace and its e-commerce business Monoprice. Former CEO Bill Ruckelshaus was replaced by former Charles Schwab & Co. executive John S. Clendening in March.

“This announcement marks an important milestone in our transition to a technology-enabled financial services company and is a significant step forward for the new Blucora,” Clendening said in a statement about the InfoSpace sale. “With this sale, we will monetize a non-core asset, allowing us to pay down debt and reduce our operating expenses.

The sale is expected to close in the third quarter. Blucora shares were up this morning, trading around $10.90.

As part of the deal, InfoSpace President Peter Mansour stepped down today. He will receive a $250,000 bonus, according to a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Founded in 1996 by Naveen Jain, InfoSpace was one of the Seattle region’s dot-com superstars. But the company hit tough times during the dot-com bust, and later sold off many of its assets. InfoSpace has survived by pivoting multiple times throughout its 20-year history. It changed its name to Blucora in 2012.

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