MINNEAPOLIS & SUNRISE, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Entrust Datacard, a leading provider of trusted identity and secure issuance technology solutions, today announced that the company has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Thales’s market-leading General Purpose Hardware Security Module (GP HSM) business, nCipher Security, which has been operating as a separate stand-alone business within Thales since January 2019. Thales is divesting its nCipher GP HSM business, in accordance with Regulatory Clearances necessary to complete Thales’s forthcoming and previously-announced acquisition of Gemalto and to ensure a strong competitive market leader in the HSM market.
General Purpose HSMs are a core component of Entrust Datacard’s solutions and are 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 not only further extend its ability to provide its customers with solutions that meet their demand for high assurance use cases – but also 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 acquisition strengthens the Entrust Datacard technology portfolio that secures data and identities across internal, cloud and hybrid networks, and from more frequent and sophisticated cyberattacks. It also provides a proven, trusted platform that enhances and extends the security of applications at the heart of the digital initiatives of today and tomorrow, including the Internet of Things, digital payments, card issuance and blockchain.
“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,” said Todd Wilkinson, president and CEO of Entrust Datacard. He continued, “The Thales General Purpose HSM solution, known as nCipher, has a strong market position based on a wide range of use cases, brings with it exceptional talent and offers us the ability to develop even more comprehensive solutions for our clients.”
“nCipher Security is delighted to join Entrust Datacard. There is a powerful synergy between our solutions and the combination of our organizations 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,” said Cindy Provin, Chief Executive Officer of nCipher Security.
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. Additional information about the acquisition will be released once the transaction is closed. The acquisition is expected to be finalized during the second quarter of 2019. Financial terms of the acquisition will not be disclosed.
For more information about Entrust Datacard, visit: www.entrustdatacard.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. For more information, visit 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
