(Il Sole 24 Ore Radiocor) - Milano, 21 apr - French aerospace company Airbus said it has entered into an agreement for the acquisition of the French cyber-security company Quarkslab for an undisclosed amount, as it seeks to strengthen its presence in the European cybersecurity landscape.

Closing of the transaction is subject to consultation with social partners as well as customary regulatory approvals, and is expected in the course of 2026. In less than a month, this is the second acquisition agreement in the field of cyber-security signed by Airbus Defence and Space.

Quarkslab is a privately-owned French cybersecurity company founded in 2011. Since 2020, the firm has been backed by Tikehau Capital, a global alternative asset manager. The company delivers cyber security solutions to help organisations protect critical assets, data, and users from cyberattacks. It also markets QShield, a comprehensive solution for software providers, to protect software against AI threats, safeguard data, secrets and code and to secure edge components, namely in the defence and aerospace industries, from being reverse engineered by attackers or AI.

'This acquisition will strengthen our ability to build the digital shield required to help keep our home nations and allies ahead in the cyber-security domain," said Francois Lombard, head of the Connected Intelligence business unit at Airbus Defence and Space.

Being already an Airbus supplier and partner, Quarkslab will complement Airbus' existing French sovereign capabilities of its cybersecurity business.

This move follows the successful acquisition of Infodas in Germany in 2024 and the planned acquisition of Ultra Cyber in the UK announced in March 2026, which strengthened Airbus' European sovereign capabilities of its cybersecurity.

business.

(RADIOCOR) 21-04-26 12:27:44 (0353) 5 NNNN