LONDON (SHARECAST) - US software group Safenet has agreed a 300p bid for nCipher, valuing the internet security group at £86.1m.
Shareholders speaking for nearly 52% of nCipher shares have agreed the deal, subject to no-one else making a higher offer.
nCipher added that it had received approaches from other prospective acquirers both before and since SafeNet's approach, but they were not considered by the board to reflect the fundamental value of the business.
Good growth opportunities remain within the markets in which nCipher operates, it said, but significant additional resources and capacity are required in order to pursue these and significant growth in the business would be difficult to achieve on a standalone basis.
SafeNet said it considers the potential acquisition of nCipher to be an attractive opportunity to add expertise and capabilities to reinforce its position in the broad IT security market. ------------------------------------------- LONDON (SHARECAST) - Encryption specialist nCipher is to remain independent after US group Safenet abandoned its 300p per share takeover bid following its referral to the Competition Commission.
In a statement, SafeNet said that the proposed acquisition of nCipher would prove too costly and time consuming because of the referral.
The Competition Commission wanted to review the bid as it claimed SafeNet and nCipher are two of the largest suppliers of IT security hardware modules in the UK.
nCipher said it accepts and agrees with SafeNet's decision, adding that good growth opportunities exist within the markets in which nCipher operates.
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