McAfee, Security Software Company Acquired for $ 14 Billion

Security software company McAfee will go private through the purchase of a group of investors in a deal valued at more than $ 14 billion, the company announced Monday. Bloomberg first reported last week that a possible deal was imminent.

McAfee was founded in 1987 by John McAfee and became known for his computer antivirus software. McAfee, the founder, left McAfee, the company, in 1994, and the company was acquired by Intel in 2010 for $ 7.68 billion. In 2014, Intel announced that it would phase out the McAfee brand name for security software and change it to "Intel Security."

Last October, the company went public again. McAfee said in the announcement that it will continue as a "purely consumer cybersecurity" company after selling its Enterprise business to private equity firm Symphony Technology Group for $ 4 billion in July. The company said the deal announced Monday to sell the investment group, which includes Advent International Corp., Permira Advisers, and Crosspoint Capital Partners, is expected to close in the first half of 2022.

John McAfee had led a turbulent life after leaving the company; In 2012, he fled to Guatemala when Belizean authorities sought to question him in connection with the murder of a neighbour. In March, he was charged with securities fraud by a "pump and dump" cryptocurrency scheme, where authorities said he and his bodyguard persuaded his Twitter followers to invest in certain coins and then sold their holdings in the coins. when prices went up. McAfee was found dead in a Barcelona prison cell in June, shortly after Spain approved his extradition to the United States to face charges of tax fraud.