Security outfit McAfee, whose founder offed himself in a police cell this year, is in talks to sell up to a consortium of private equity firms in a deal valued at more than $10 billion, according to various reports.
The consortium of private equity investors is led by Advent International and also includes Permira, CPP Investment Board, Crosspoint Capital, Abu Dhabi Investment Authority and GIC.
It would represent one of the biggest cybersecurity acquisitions of all time and would bring McAfee’s brief spell as a public company to an end after it had an IPO last October.
Earlier this year, McAfee became a consumer-only business by selling off its enterprise division to Symphony Technology Group in a deal worth $4 billion. Symphony then announced plans to merge the business with FireEye Products to create a new company with $2 billion in revenues.
McAfee was previously owned by Intel, which acquired the business in 2010 for $7.7 billion but flogged off a 51 percent stake in 2016 to private equity firm TPG Capital.
TPG then sold part of its stake to another private equity firm Thoma Bravo, before McAfee opted to IPO in 2020.
