Singtel Readies $300 Million Sale of Cyber Security Arm Trustwave, Sources Say

Manuel Baigorri and Elffie Chew, Bloomberg News

A man walks past signage for Singapore Telecommunications Ltd. (Singtel) in Singapore, on Friday, July 6, 2018. Singtel, Southeast Asia’s largest telecom services provider, will start a regional competitive gaming league as part of its diversification into e-sports and digital content. Photographer: Nicky Loh/Bloomberg , Bloomberg

(Bloomberg) -- Singapore Telecommunications Ltd. is moving forward with a planned sale of its cyber security business Trustwave Holdings Inc. that could raise about $200 million to $300 million, people familiar with the matter said.

The Singapore operator has been speaking with financial advisers as it prepares for a potential divestment of the Chicago-based unit, the people said, asking not to be identified because the matter is private. Trustwave could attract interest from other firms in the industry and investment funds, according to the people.

Considerations are preliminary and Singtel could still decide to retain the asset, they said. A representative for Singtel declined to comment.

Singtel is streamlining its portfolio as it seeks to raise cash and focus on 5G operations as well as developing new growth engines including IT services and data centers.

The company announced in May 2021 it was taking a $250 million non-cash impairment charge against its investment in Trustwave, and said had begun a strategic review of the business. Trustwave later divested SecureTrust, its payment card industry compliance business, for $80 million, according to a press release last October. Singtel acquired Trustwave in 2015 for $810 million.

The telecom company agreed to sell advertising platform Amobee in July to Tremor International Ltd. for total consideration of $239 million, according to a statement. It is also considering options including a potential stake sale in the fiber assets of its Australian subsidiary SingTel Optus Pty, Bloomberg News has reported.

In October, Singtel sold a majority stake in a portfolio of Australian wireless tower assets to pension manager AustralianSuper Pty for about A$1.9 billion ($1.3 billion).

The valuations of both private and public tech assets slumped in recent months amid rising interest rates and fears over economic growth, prompting some investors to trim bets on digital companies. Shares in cyber security firm Crowdstrike Holdings Inc. have lost 22.5% in the last 12 months, while NortonLifeLock Inc. is down 9.4% in the same period.

(Updates with additional details on strategy from fourth paragraph)