A Paris-based global systems security firm with some 400 employees in Plantation is growing, acquiring a Silicon Valley firm to expand its U.S. operations. Thales, the European company, said it would be acquiring California's Vormetric, a provider of data protection solutions, for $400 million. The company said it expected the deal to close in the first quarter of 2016. Thales, which has most of its U.S. operation in Broward County, said it is acquiring Vormetric to leverage its position among eSecurity providers. The firm noted it is involved in "protecting critical networks and data of 19 of the 20 largest banks in the world." A spokesman for Thales said the firm would retain Vormetric's operation in California, but the development meant growth could occur at the firm's Plantation campus.
