(Dec 14): ServiceNow Inc is in advanced talks to buy Armis, a cyber security start-up that had been eyeing an initial public offering next year, in a deal that may be valued at as much as US$7 billion ($9 billion), people familiar with the situation said.
A deal may be announced in the coming days, the people said, asking not to be identified because the talks are private. While the talks are advanced, they may still fall apart or another potential bidder may emerge, the people said. ServiceNow declined to comment. Armis didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.
Armis, which is based in San Francisco, was founded by veterans of Israeli military cyber intelligence. It specialises in identifying and tracking security threats on devices, working across a range of industries, including medical, financial services and defence. In early August, the company’s chief executive officer Yevgeny Dibrov said Armis had reached US$300 million in annual recurring revenue, up from US$200 million a year ago.
The deal follows a slew of acquisitions in the cyber security sector, a trend fuelled by the growing use of artificial intelligence to detect hacking threats. In March, Google parent Alphabet Inc agreed to acquire cloud security firm Wiz Inc for US$32 billion in cash. In July, Palo Alto Networks Inc agreed to buy CyberArk Software Ltd in a deal valuing the Israeli company at about US$25 billion.
In 2020, Insight Partners agreed to acquire Armis in a US$1.1 billion deal that included other investors, such as Alphabet’s CapitalG.
Private equity giant Thoma Bravo had previously eyed a potential deal with Armis, and the start-up’s executives said in September that they’d been weighing around six to seven offers from investors for a stake in the company.
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