Vista Takes the Keys to HID’s Digital Certificate Business

Vista Equity Partners has agreed to acquire the public key infrastructure business of HID, the identity technology arm of Swedish lock and access group ASSA ABLOY. The unit sells the digital certificates that allow computers, websites and people to authenticate online, supporting encrypted connections, secure email and digital signatures. The business comprises IdenTrust, HydrantID and ZeroSSL, and generated approximately $58 million in sales in 2025, according to the parent company's description of a strong operating margin. Vista is also acquiring the unit's on-premise credential and smart card lifecycle management business. The sale is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2026.

The business was assembled through three acquisitions: IdenTrust, bought by ASSA ABLOY in January 2014; HydrantID, added in 2019; and ZeroSSL, added in January 2024. IdenTrust, headquartered in Salt Lake City, serves as the certificate authority for individuals and organizations, with TrustID certificates, ACES certificates tied to a General Services Administration program, and IGC certificates cross-certified with the US Federal Bridge Certification Authority. HydrantID, now sold as HID PKI-as-a-Service, is a cloud offering that issues, renews and revokes certificates for enterprises, financial institutions, government agencies, healthcare providers and schools, running from data centers in Nevada, Virginia, Amsterdam and Dublin. ZeroSSL, based in Austria, issues free and paid SSL certificates and says it issues more than 1 million certificates a month and serves more than 500,000 clients.

HID, headquartered in Austin and owned by ASSA ABLOY since 2000, has more than 4,500 employees. Björn Lidefelt, EVP and head of HID, said the PKI team "has built a strong business with a strong customer base" and that Vista has the expertise to advance it. ASSA ABLOY CEO Nico Delvaux said the arrangement gives the unit "a committed long-term investor." Patrick Severson, senior managing director and co-head of the Foundation Fund at Vista, said the firm looks forward to investing in the people, products and customer relationships of the business. Customers and partners have been told to expect unchanged products, service and commitments after closing.

Demand drivers cited in the article include shorter certificate lifetimes. The CA/Browser Forum approved a phased reduction of maximum certificate validity from 398 days to 47 days, with the limit falling to 200 days in March 2026, 100 days in March 2027 and 47 days in March 2029. Organizations are also preparing to replace encryption that could eventually be vulnerable to quantum computers, requiring updated keys and certificates. Grand View Research estimates the global PKI market will grow from $6.4 billion in 2024 to $19.7 billion by 2030, a 21.1% annual growth rate, while MarketsandMarkets forecasts growth from $5.5 billion in 2023 to $13.8 billion by 2028.

For Vista, which manages more than $100 billion in assets and has completed more than 690 private equity transactions, the deal adds a profitable, subscription-heavy security business with a long federal customer list. Vista previously owned Ping Identity from 2016, took it public in 2019 and sold it to Thoma Bravo in 2022 in a $2.8 billion take-private. Other PKI deals cited include Clearlake Capital and TA Associates' acquisition of DigiCert in October 2019, CyberArk's agreed purchase of Venafi from Thoma Bravo for about $1.5 billion in May 2024, and Summit Partners' led growth investment of more than $1 billion in Keyfactor in July 2026.