De La Rue agrees authentication unit sale to Crane NXT

De La Rue has found a buyer for its authentication division, agreeing to sell the business to US rival Crane NXT for £300m ($391m) in cash.

The announcement comes just a few months after the 200-year-old UK firm confirmed that it had put its authentication and currency businesses up for sale, saying that its ability to continue as a going concern was at risk.

The amount set to be raised from the sale of the authentication unit is critical as De La Rue is heading towards the deadline for a £235m loan that becomes payable next June and had indicated without a deal it would struggle to continue operating beyond September 2025.

It also has a hole to plug in its pension fund, and expects to pay £30m into that on completion of the sale – expected to take place in mid-2025 – as well as another £12.5m before April 2027.

Talks are still ongoing for its currency business, which focuses on banknote printing and design.

In a statement, De La Rue said the deal "realises significant capital and provides cash to the group for the benefit of all stakeholders by unlocking the intrinsic value of the authentication division," which contributed £103m out of total revenues of £310m in the year ended March 30.

If concluded, the transaction will bring together the authentication and online brand protection portfolios of De La Rue and Crane NXT recently-acquired subsidiary OpSec and "expand Crane NXT’s portfolio to include security technologies for the identification documents and credentials market," said the US group.

The authentication unit provides tax stamps, security labels and other technologies, and in the last financial year hit its longstanding target of topping £100m in revenues and driving operating earning margins to around 20 per cent thanks to the renewal of contracts to provide security labels to Microsoft and tax stamps for two national governments.

"The acquisition of De La Rue authentication…accelerates our strategy as a market leader in providing trusted technology solutions that secure, detect and authenticate our customers’ most valuable assets," said Carne NXT's chief executive Aaron Saak (pictured above).

"Protection from counterfeiting and illicit trade is a priority for governments and leading commercial product brands," he added. "This acquisition expands our technology capabilities and will drive profitable growth in new markets."