Hacker typing on a laptop
IT services giant Atos share price shot up after there were rumours that Airbus was snuffling around looking to buy its cybersecurity unit.
The group is reportedly in preliminary talks with Airbus to take a minority take in its Evidian business.
For those who came in late, Evidian is Atos’ Identity and Access Management software suite.
Last year the group announced plans to split into two publicly listed companies by spinning off its cybersecurity business under Evidian.
Atos shares picked up seven per cent following the report.
The company had a miserable time last year, with its shares losing half their value, so a seven percent increase is better than a poke in the eye with a short stick.
January 2022 had a shaky start after Atos’s CEO, Elie Girard, left the company for undisclosed reasons.
Airbus isn’t the only one snuffling around Evidian. Thales is also interested and put $3 billion on the table to buy the outfit.
French rival onepoint and British private equity fund ICG also offered €4.2 billion. Both have been rejected so far.
