Entrust Datacard acquires Thales’ data security business
Entrust Datacard, a provider of identity and secure issuance technology, has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Thales’ general purpose hardware security module (GP HSM) business, nCipher Security.
The acquisition will be finalised durng Q2 2019
NCipher Security has been operating as a separate stand-alone business within Thales since January 2019.
The acquisition is expected to be finalised during the second quarter of 2019. Financial terms of the acquisition will not be disclosed.
Thales is divesting its nCipher GP HSM business, in accordance with regulatory clearances necessary to complete Thales’ acquisition of Gemalto.
“This acquisition is an excellent complement to our expertise in both cryptography and hardware,” says Todd Wilkinson, president and CEO of Entrust Datacard.
“There is a powerful synergy between our solutions and the combination of our organisations will accelerate innovation for our customers as they embark on initiatives such as mobility, cloud and IoT to grow their businesses and simultaneously strive to protect data and manage ever-growing cyber risk,” adds Cindy Provin, CEO of nCipher Security.
Entrust Datacard says GP HSMs are a core component of its solutions, and an underlying part of the security infrastructure of the company’s public key infrastructure (PKI) and secure socket layer (SSL) offerings.
The acquisition will allow the company to address the increased demand for data security stemming from regulations such as the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the electronic identification, authentication and trust services (eIDAS) regulation.
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.
