Local telco StarHub announced on Wednesday (August 5) that it has partnered with Temasek subsidiary Leone Investments to form a joint cybersecurity venture.
Called Ensign InfoSecurity, it is touted to be one of the largest cybersecurity organisations in Asia that will offer security solutions to governments and enterprises globally.
Its end-to-end capabilities will include professional services, systems integration and managed security services.
Its machine learning and proprietary Big Data capabilities will also provide clients with access to advanced threat detection and the ability to provide round-the-clock monitoring services.
Temasek To Hold Majority 60% Share
According to StarHub, it will merge its Cyber Security Centre of Excellence as well as its subsidiary Accel Systems and Technologies (ASTL) with Temasek-owned Quann — a subsidiary of security vendor Certis Cisco — to form the new entity.
This new firm will be led by Quann’s executive chairman Lee Fook Sun.
Additionally, Temasek will hold a majority 60 per cent of the joint venture firm, while StarHub will own the remaining 40 per cent.
Besides transferring all ASTL and other cybersecurity assets, StarHub said that it will pay S$36 million in cash for its stake in Ensign.
This amount will be funded using internal cash resources and the transaction is expected to close by this October, “subject to the fulfilment of mutually agreed conditions”.
500 New Hires
In a separate media statement by Ensign, the company said that it will hire about 500 cybersecurity specialists, comprising analysts, consultants and researchers.
It added that it will generate revenue in excess of S$100 million annually in cybersecurity solutions, systems integration and managed services.
Beyond this, it will also build on its current core markets of Singapore, Malaysia and Hong Kong, and expand regionally.
It also shared its plans to expand its focus on cyber analytics, develop global threat intelligence centres with partners, and build cyber-security R&D (research and development) labs.
Featured Image Credit: Nanyang Polytechnic
