Gemalto inks deal with 3M

Gemalto has entered into an agreement to acquire 3M's Identity Management Business for US$850 million. 3M's Identity Management Business is composed of 3M Cogent, which provides a spectrum of biometric solutions with a focus on civil identification, border control and law enforcement, and 3M's Document Reader and Secure Materials Businesses.Headquartered in the US and present on three continents, 3M's Identity Management Business offers biometric based end-to-end solutions enabling identity verification and authentication. According to Gemalto, 3M's Identity Management team of approximately 450 people has developed biometrics algorithms (finger, face, iris) and is at the forefront of innovation with the latest multi-modal biometric solutions. Annual revenue of the business is approximately US$215M and profit from operations at US$58M.Gemalto says: "As Gemalto pursues its expansion and prepares for the future, this acquisition both completes Gemalto Government Programs offer by in-sourcing biometric technology and ideally positions the company to provide solutions for the promising commercial biometrics market. Our combined offers and experience in the public sector to manage the enrolment, identification of individuals, flow of passengers and border control should contribute to stronger national security. On the commercial side, as online and mobile transactions grow, new forms of multi-factor authentication and identification are needed to complement physical ID documents. Combining market access and technologies from 3M's Identity Management Business and Gemalto will allow trusted national identities and strong biometric authentication to develop throughout the digital economy."Once the acquisition is completed, 3M's Identity Management Business will become part of the Gemalto Government Programs business which recorded a revenue of 391 million euros in 2015.The closing of the transaction is expected to occur in the first half of 2017, after approval from the relevant regulatory and anti-trust authorities and employee consultation where required."Gemalto is delighted to welcome new members to its international team," says Philippe VallÉe, CEO, Gemalto. "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."

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