Gemalto announced today that it will acquire 3M’s identity-management business, which will become a part of the Gemalto Government Programs business.
The agreement to acquire 3M’s identity-management business totaled US$850 million, and it includes 3M subsidiary Cogent. The closing of this transaction is expected to start in the first half of 2017. When the acquisition is complete, 3M’s identity-management business will become part of Gemalto Government Programs business, which recorded a revenue of €391 million in 2015, according to a company announcement.
(Related: Google evaluates FIDO authentication)
Gemalto, a company that focuses on digital security for businesses and governments, wanted to expand its solutions for the commercial biometrics market, which 3M specializes in. 3M’s identity-management business provides biometric solutions that focus on civil identification, border control and law enforcement, and it contains 3M’s Document Reader and Secure Materials businesses.
“3M’s identity-management business and Gemalto perfectly fit, solving authentication and identity-management pain points across our customer segments, creating immediate increased differentiation, and offering additional long term growth perspectives,” said Philippe Vallée, Gemalto’s CEO.
Combining 3M’s offering with Gemalto’s will allow access to trusted national identities and strong biometric authentication for companies in the digital economy, according to the company’s’ announcement. It will also complete Gemalto Government Programs by offering in-sourcing biometric technology, and Gemalto said it should set the company up to provide solutions for the commercial biometrics market.
