Gemalto to acquire SafeNet for $890M

Amsterdam-based digital security firm Gemalto says it will close on an $890 million deal to buy SafeNet later this year.

“We have just entered into our new multi-year development plan, and there is a perfect fit between Gemalto’s ‘security at the edge’ and SafeNet’s ‘security at the core’ capabilities,” Gemalto CEO Olivier Piou said in a press release. The company claims more than 400 million digital data records have been lost or stolen so far in 2014.

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There’s no doubt that big business (and the Internet at large) has a security problem. As individuals and businesses become increasingly aware of their vulnerability to attacks, they may start looking for security solutions. Or at least that’s what Gemalto is hoping. The company is looking to expand its enterprise product offerings and to give more Internet access to its products.

Be sure this is a big acquisition. SafeNet protects over 80% of global intra-bank fund transfers and serves over 25,000 corporations and government agencies with its cryptographic key management systems and authentication services. Clients include Bank of America, Cisco, Dell, Kaiser Permanente, and Netflix. SafeNet will filter into Gemalto’s payment and identity team as well as its platforms and services section, the company said.

Gemalto will finance the deal with $440 million in cash and an additional $450 million in credit. The company expects the acquisition to help it surpass expected 2017 operating profit by 10%.