Linklaters has advised Bundesdruckerei on the formation of a joint venture with Giesecke & Devrient.
The new joint venture will operate under the name Veridos, and will bundle both partners’ international business with solutions for secure identification, such as passport and ID card systems for governments. Bundesdruckerei will hold a 40% share in Veridos and G&D a 60% share.
The parties have agreed on Berlin as the new company’s headquarters. Additionally, the company will have an operating facility in Munich, a production site in Greece and other subsidiaries in Canada, Mexico, and Brazil and will operate independently on the international market. Subject to approval under competition law, Veridos will commence business operations in mid-2014.
The parties continue to independently pursue their business in Germany, their business activities on the private sector market, and in banknote printing.
Veridos will be a one-stop supplier and technology leader for ID solutions for the international government market. Veridos will provide a total of around 400 jobs.
According to Linklaters, the portfolio of Bundesdruckerei and G&D includes “one-stop solutions for the production and personalisation of passport documents, ID cards and cards for the health sector as well as driving licences via issuance, personalisation and document management systems right through to solutions for border control and identification of individuals. eID systems to authenticate and protect electronic internet transactions and to safeguard communications by public agencies are another important part of this portfolio.”
The Linklaters team was led by Partner Christopher Bremme, and included Detlev Schuster, Jan Endler, Oliver Rosenberg, Kirsten Placke, Martin Borning, Thorben Eisenbeiss, Martin Dressel, Christian Ley, Julia Sack, Anna Reshetina, Alexander von Heinz, Dr Ferry Buhring, Beatrice Moller, Jens Hollinderbaumer, Katja Kupko, and Elena Rodriguez.
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