SoftBank in Preliminary Talks to Buy Allied Universal

SoftBank Group is in preliminary discussions to acquire Allied Universal in a potential transaction valued at about $18 billion, according to people familiar with the talks. No price or deal structure has been decided, and the discussions may not result in an acquisition. The reported valuation is not confirmed as a final transaction figure. One account described it as potentially representing Allied Universal’s equity value and noted the company has about $12 billion in debt, which could bring the total enterprise value close to $30 billion. The valuation basis has not been settled in the reported discussions. People familiar with the talks said SoftBank could eventually replace some Allied Universal security staff with robots. Humanoid robots for security work would take longer to deploy, according to the same reporting. No deployment schedule or estimate of potential job impacts was provided. Allied Universal supplies security personnel and services for businesses, venues and major events, and has work supporting data-center construction and operations. The company’s established network could offer SoftBank a route into security operations as it pursues artificial...