Atos/Eviden: Airbus throws in the towel (again)
On March 19, 2024, Atos and Airbus announced they had ended talks towards a potential buyout by the aircraft manufacturer of the IT giant’s Big Data and Security (BDS) branch. In January 2024, Airbus had shown interest in buying BDS for 1.5 billion euros.
The aircraft manufacturer led a first round of negotiations in early 2023 to buy 30% of Eviden, the Atos branch dedicated to growing high tech. Eviden encompasses the cloud, big data, AI and cybersecurity businesses of Atos, and thus includes BDS. At the time, Airbus did not pursue the matter.
In February 2024, Atos also announced the end of negotiations with EPEI, a company belonging to Czech billionaire Daniel Křetínský, regarding the acquisition of Tech Foundations. This second Atos branch covers the company’s traditional business in IT facilities management, and is in chronic deficit.
The back-to-back announcements are jeopardizing plans to split the French IT giant in two, due to a lack of investors and buyers. Facing serious financial trouble, Atos remains determined to sell part of its business to get out of this rut.
“Atos is actively assessing strategic alternatives that will take into account the French government’s sovereignty requirements. As a result, the company is postponing its 2023 yearly results until the near future in order to be able to assess its strategic options,” reads the French company’s press release.