Over the past week, BlackBerry’s stock has been on a notable upward trajectory, climbing over 18%, as per data from S&P Global Market Intelligence. This surge comes in the wake of the closure of a significant asset sale by the long-standing Canadian tech firm, a deal that was initially announced towards the end of 2024.
### Cylance: A Valuable Asset
On Monday evening, BlackBerry announced the completed sale of its Cylance cybersecurity unit’s endpoint security assets. The buyer, Arctic Wolf, is a well-regarded U.S. company specializing solely in cybersecurity. Last December, both companies, who have been business partners, finalized an agreement where Arctic Wolf agreed to purchase Cylance through a combination of cash and stock. BlackBerry is set to receive $160 million in cash upfront—subject to certain undisclosed adjustments—and approximately 5.5 million shares in Arctic Wolf, which is still privately held.
The agreement outlined that BlackBerry would collect about $80 million upon closing the transaction and an additional $40 million a year later.
### Ongoing Partnership
In a press release, BlackBerry CEO John Giamatteo described the sale as “pivotal.” He emphasized that the company is “excited to continue our relationship with Arctic Wolf as a customer, as a reseller of our portfolio to our large government customer base, and as a shareholder in this thriving, burgeoning company.”
Back in 2019, BlackBerry purchased Cylance, known for leveraging artificial intelligence to enhance its security solutions, for a hefty $1.4 billion in cash, along with unvested employee incentive awards.
