ROME (Reuters) -Italy’s Leonardo has agreed to buy Sweden’s Axiomatics, a source told Reuters on Wednesday, marking a further step in the company’s efforts to expand its cybersecurity business.
The source, close to the matter, did not disclose the value of the deal, first reported in Italian financial newspaper MF.
Axiomatics did not immediately reply to requests for comment.
Founded in 2006 and based in Stockholm, the group specialises in so-called attribute-based access control authorisation systems.
In past months Leonardo had been looking at many domestic and foreign companies for possible acquisitions in the cybersecurity sector, which it views as a critical area for future growth. The company anticipates double-digit expansion in the sector over the coming years.
Last week the state-controlled group bought a 24.55% stake in SSH, in a deal making it the biggest single shareholder in the Finnish company.
At the Paris airshow last month Leonardo’s Chairman Stefano Pontecorvo told Reuters, “cybersecurity is an essential component in so-called multi-domain warfare, where everything is connected with everything”.
(Reporting by Giulia Segreti, additional reporting by Anna Ringstrom in Stockholm; Editing by Louise Heavens)
