IBM is reportedly planning a re-entry into the point-of-sale (POS) space. According to Bloomberg the firm is in discussions to acquire iPad-based POS company Revel Systems.
No price is yet attached to the deal, but Revel is thought to be valued at more than $500m having raised more than $127m since its 2010 launch. IBM sold its POS terminal business to Toshiba in 2012 for more than $800m.
The rumoured acquisition talks come at a time when many highly-valued tech businesses are putting themselves up for sale amid concerns about slowing access to capital and potential valuation drops.
Recently the POS business has seeing strong growth with Square reporting a 41% increase in revenues last quarter, as card payments continue to grow globally.
Competitors in the POS space, including Revel are continuing to expand their offerings to include services such as payroll, inventory, scheduling and accounting tools.
These services, combined with IBM’s reach and it enterprise sales partnership with Apple, could make the two companies a good fit. Discussions are reportedly still at an early stage.
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