TECH - Google to Reportedly Acquire Wiz: ETFs in Focus | Benzinga
According to a report from the Wall Street Journal, Google's parent company Alphabet is reportedly in talks to acquire cyber security startup Wiz for $23 billion. This potential acquisition would be Google's largest ever and significantly boost its cloud computing capabilities.
The potential deal has put ETFs with a substantial allocation to Alphabet in focus. These include Communication Services Select Sector SPDR Fund (ARCA:XLC), Vanguard Communication Services ETF (ARCA:VOX), Fidelity MSCI Communication Services Index ETF (ARCA:FCOM), iShares Global Comm Services ETF (ARCA:IXP) and MicroSectors FANG+ ETN (ARCA:FNGS).
Wiz, an Israeli startup founded in 2020, is one of the fastest-growing start-ups in the cloud security arena and has been positioning itself as a platform provider versus leaders Palo Alto Networks, Zscaler (NASDAQ: ZS) and others.
The potential deal highlights Alphabet's strategic focus on enhancing its cybersecurity portfolio amid increasing competition in the tech industry. It would boost Google's cloud-computing business, which lags behind Amazon.com unit Amazon Web Services as well as Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT). Offering an all-in-one approach to cloud security, Wiz relies on ingesting data from various cloud platforms, including Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud, and then scanning it all for security risk factors.
Alphabet executives see the deal as a way to fortify Google's cloud business, which grew 28% to $9.57 billion in the first quarter of this year. However, an agreement hasn't been reached yet, and talks ...