Irish eyes are smiling

Cryptography specialist, Zergo, is in discussions with Dublin-based Baltimore Technologies, with a view to purchasing the Irish company. Both produce software for encoding data to be sent via the Internet, a market which analysts predict has the potential to grow in value to around $3.5 billion, from the $500 million it stands at today. Zergo’s turnover for the year ending 30 April stood at £13.2 million. Zergo, based in Basingstoke, floated on the London Stock Exchange in July. Baltimore is privately owned. If it goes ahead, the deal will inject fresh capital into Baltimore, without it having to go public. With a growing number of companies concerned about the onset of recession and general turmoil in the financial markets, mergers and acquisitions are being favoured as a way of bringing in new capital rather that floating on the stock exchange.®