Microsoft has provided the first hints about why it’s prepared to stump up a massive US$26,2bn to buy LinkedIn, the social network for professionals.

The software giant said on Monday that it has agreed to buy LinkedIn for $196/share, a 49,5% premium to LinkedIn’s closing price on Friday.

LinkedIn will retain its brand and independence, with Jeff Weiner remaining CEO of the company, Microsoft said in a statement Monday.

“The LinkedIn team has grown a fantastic business centered on connecting the world’s professionals,” Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said. “Together we can accelerate the growth of LinkedIn, as well as Microsoft Office 365 and Dynamics as we seek to empower every person and organisation on the planet.”

Dynamics is Microsoft’s suite of enterprise resource planning and customer relationship management software, while Office 365 is its subscription- and cloud-based productivity suite.

“Just as we have changed the way the world connects to opportunity, this relationship with Microsoft, and the combination of their cloud and LinkedIn’s network, now gives us a chance to also change the way the world works,” LinkedIn’s Weiner said in the statement.

The companies said that over the past year, LinkedIn has launched a new version of its mobile app that has led to increased member engagement; enhanced the LinkedIn newsfeed to deliver better business insights; acquired online learning platform Lynda.com to enter a new market; and rolled out a new version of its “Recruiter” product to its enterprise customers.

LinkedIn said it has more than 433m members worldwide, of which 105m are unique visitors each month.

The transaction, which has been unanimously approved by the boards of both companies, is expected to close by the end of the year, once it has the necessary regulatory approvals.