McAfee lives again as Intel spins off security arm

Intel is selling off a majority stake in its security division – formerly McAfee – to private investment firm TPG.

Essentially, Intel's security arm will be spun off into an independent company, which will once again be known as McAfee, and TPG will own 51% of the firm, with Intel keeping hold of the remaining 49%.

The deal will see Intel receive $3.1 billion (around £2.3 billion, AU$4 billion) in cash, with the transaction valuing the business at $4.2 billion (around £3.2 billion, AU$5.5 billion) – including debt – and with TPG pledging $1.1 billion (around £825 million, AU$1.4 billion) worth of investment going forward to drive the new company to fresh heights (or that's certainly the plan, anyway).

As ever, this is subject to the usual regulatory scrutiny, but if all goes well the deal is expected to close in Q2 of next year.

Energetic change

Chris Young, currently Senior Vice President and General Manager, Intel Security Group, will be the CEO of the new McAfee, and he noted that he "couldn't be more energised about our future and how this transaction moves us forward".

He commented: "We will continue to focus on solving the unique demands of customers in the dynamic cybersecurity marketplace, drive innovation that anticipates future market needs, and continue to grow through our strategic priorities."

Intel stated that the company's security platform currently protects some 250 million endpoints and detects over 400,000 new threats daily.

In the first half of 2016, Intel Security saw revenue increase to $1.1 billion (around £825 million, AU$1.4 billion) which represented a growth of 11% compared to last year.

Via: The Register