Facebook to purchase WhatsApp in $19 billion deal

Facebook has agreed to buy global messaging service WhatsApp in a deal worth as much as $19 billion in cash, stock and restricted shares. WhatsApp, which says it will continue to operate independently, processes 50 billion messages each day and counts 450 million active users, with 70% of those logging in at least once a day. Facebook is "buying 450 million loyal users and an extraordinary growth story, but at a staggering cost," wrote Bloomberg Industries analyst Paul Sweeney.

Source: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-02-19/facebook-to-buy-mobile-messaging-app-whatsapp-for-16-billion.html