(Bloomberg) — EQT AB and KKR & Co. are among private equity firms interested in acquiring a software business being sold by Broadcom Inc. in the wake of its takeover of VMware Inc., people with knowledge of the matter said.
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Thoma Bravo has also been studying a possible bid for the so-called end-user computing unit, according to the people. The business, which provides software enabling users to access desktops and applications remotely, could be valued at roughly $5 billion including debt, they said.
Broadcom inherited the end-user computing unit as part of its $61 billion acquisition of software maker VMware in 2023. The San Jose-based semiconductor company subsequently outlined plans to divest two VMware assets it deemed as non-core.
The other is a security software business called Carbon Black, which the people said could be valued at about $1 billion including debt.
Deliberations are ongoing and there’s no certainty any of the private equity firms will decide to bid for the end-user computing asset, the people said, asking not to be identified discussing confidential information.
Representatives for EQT, KKR, Thoma Bravo and Broadcom declined to comment.
Broadcom completed its takeover of VMware in November following an unexpectedly long 18-month process that culminated in regulatory approval from China. Broadcom Chief Executive Officer Hock Tan will use the deal to build a bigger foothold in so-called hybrid cloud services, which cater to businesses that store data both in their own facilities and outside server farms.
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