THALES (EPA:HO) - Thales signs a definitive agreement to sell its GP HSM business to Entrust datacard - Press release - 22 February 2019
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22/02/2019 07:00
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PRESS RELEASE
22 February 2019
Paris La Défense
Thales signs a definitive agreement to sell its General Purpose Hardware
Security Module business to Entrust Datacard
Thales (Euronext Paris: HO) announces today the signing of a definitive
agreement with Entrust Datacard, a leading provider of trusted identity and
secure issuance technology solutions, for the divestment of its General Purpose
Hardware Security Module (GP HSM) business, which has been operating as a
separate stand-alone business within Thales since January 2019 under the brand
"nCipher Security".
This transaction is expected to close during the second quarter of 2019. It
addresses commitments made by Thales to several competition authorities to
divest this business to a suitable purchaser in order to ensure a strongly
competitive market for GP HSM solutions and to finalize the acquisition of
Gemalto. The transaction is subject to the successful completion of the
acquisition of Gemalto by Thales, the approval of Entrust as a suitable
purchaser by the European Commission, US Department of Justice, Australian
Competition and Consumer Commission, and New Zealand Commerce Commission, and
the satisfaction of customary closing conditions.
This transaction will enable nCipher Security - with more than EUR100m in
revenues in 2018 and over 300 employees - to continue to deliver innovative
solutions and services and strengthen its market leadership.
With customers in more than 150 countries, Entrust Datacard has been offering
identity-based, enterprise-grade security solutions for 50 years. It has more
than 2,200 employees in 34 locations worldwide.
With over EUR500m in annual revenue, Entrust Datacard has a broad portfolio of
complementary solutions to secure and control customers' critical information
and applications. The company is a global leader in Public Key Infrastructure
(PKI) solutions and services - the primary use case for GP HSMs in protecting
infrastructure private keys such as root and issuing Certification Authorities
keys. This makes Entrust Datacard the ideal organization for Thales to divest
this business, ensuring its leadership position in the GP HSMs market and
providing trust, integrity and control to business-critical applications.
Philippe Keryer, Executive Vice-President, Strategy, Research and Technology at
Thales, stated: "This announcement marks a key step in the ongoing process
regarding the acquisition of Gemalto which we expect to close by end March
2019. We are convinced that nCipher Security will strongly leverage the
expertise of Entrust Datacard, an organization focused on their competencies in
the development of safe and secure access to information, applications and
networks as well as its global presence specifically in Europe and in North
America."
Todd Wilkinson, president and CEO of Entrust Datacard stated: "This acquisition
is an excellent complement to our expertise in both cryptography and hardware
and will extend our ability to meet the evolving security needs of our
customers globally while allowing us to accelerate our own growth. The Thales
General Purpose HSM solution, known as nCipher Security, has a strong market
position, brings with it exceptional internal talent and offers us the ability
to develop even more comprehensive solutions for our clients."
About Thales
The people we all rely on to make the world go round - they rely on Thales. Our
customers come to us with big ambitions: to make life better, to keep us safer.
Combining a unique diversity of expertise, talents and cultures, our architects
design and deliver extraordinary high technology solutions. Solutions that make
tomorrow possible, today. From the bottom of the oceans to the depth of space
and cyberspace, we help our customers think smarter and act faster - mastering
ever greater complexity and every decisive moment along the way. With 65,000
employees in 56 countries, Thales reported sales of EUR15.8 billion in 2017.
www.thalesgroup.com
About Entrust Datacard Corporation
Consumers, citizens and employees increasingly expect anywhere-anytime
experiences - whether they are making purchases, crossing borders, accessing
e-gov services or logging onto corporate networks. Entrust Datacard offers the
trusted identity and secure transaction technologies that make those
experiences reliable and secure. Solutions range from the physical world of
financial cards, passports and ID cards to the digital realm of authentication,
certificates and secure communications. With more than 2,200 Entrust Datacard
colleagues around the world, and a network of strong global partners, the
company serves customers in 150 countries worldwide.
www.entrustdatacard.com
About nCipher Security
Today's fast moving digital environment enhances customer satisfaction, gives
competitive advantage and improves operational efficiency. It also multiplies
the security risks. nCipher Security, a leader in the general purpose hardware
security module (HSM) market, empowers world-leading organizations by
delivering trust, integrity and control to their business critical information
and applications.
Our cryptographic solutions secure emerging technologies - cloud, IoT,
blockchain, digital payments - and help meet new compliance mandates, using the
same proven technology that global organizations depend on today to protect
against threats to their sensitive data, network communications and enterprise
infrastructure. We deliver trust for your business critical applications,
ensuring the integrity of your data and putting you in complete control -
today, tomorrow, at all times.
www.ncipher.com
CONTACTS
Thales, Media Relations
Cédric Leurquin
+33 (0)1 57 77 90 93
cedric.leurquin@thalesgroup.com
Thales, Media Relations
Constance Arnoux
+33 (0)1 57 77 91 58
constance.arnoux@thalesgroup.com
Thales, Analysts/Investors
Bertrand Delcaire
+33 1 57 77 89 02
ir@thalesgroup.com
Entrust Datacard, Public Relations
Michelle Morgan-Nelsen
+1 952 988 1796
michelle.morgan-nelsen@entrustdatacard.com
Entrust Datacard, Analyst Relations
Barry McArthur
+1 613 2703 493
barry.mcarthur@entrustdatacard.com
GROUP COMMUNICATIONS - Thales - Tour Carpe Diem - 31 Place des Corolles -
92098 Paris La Défense
Cedex - France - Tel.: +33(0)1 57 77 86 26 - www.thalesgroup.com