NortonLifeLock buys Avira in $360 million cash deal

December 7, 2020 TH Author

Cybersecurity firm NortonLifeLock (formerly Symantec) has agreed today to acquire German antivirus maker Avira from Bahrain-based Investcorp Technology Partners in a $360 million all-cash deal.

The acquisition is expected to close in Q1 2021, subject to regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions, the two companies said today in a joint press release.

Avira CEO Travis Witteveen and CTO Matthias Ollig will also join the NortonLifeLock leadership team following the deal’s completion.

NortonLifeLock hopes today’s acquisition will accelerate its international expansion in markets it currently has a small presence.

Avira has a strong userbase in the EU. The company is known for its freemium business model through which it provides free security software to users across the world.

Avira free software is installed on more than 30 million devices, and the company also boasts more than 1.5 million paying customers.

Avira was founded in 1986 in Germany by Tjark Auerbach, and at its peak, in 2012, it boasted a userbase of more than 100 million devices.

Auerbach sold Avira to Investcorp in April 2020 for $180 million.

NortonLifeLock was founded in November 2019 after Broadcom bought Symantec’s enterprise security assets for $10.7 billion. NortonLifeLock now manages Symantec’s old consumer-facing portfolio.