Technology company Anite has confirmed that it is preparing for the sale of its travel arm.
In a trading update this morning, Anite said: “The board confirms that it continues to investigate a potential disposal.
“There is no certainty that this process will result in a transaction, nor can there be any certainty of the value of any such transaction if it were to complete.
“Further updates will be provided as and when appropriate.”
The statement followed weekend reports in the Sunday Telegraph that the software firm was in exclusive talks to sell the travel business to LDC, the private equity arm of Lloyds Banking Group.
It is thought that Anite’s travel division, which offers software solutions for online bookings to companies in the leisure sector, could fetch around £40 million.
The group’s @com reservation system handles bookings for millions of passengers each year and is increasingly used as more people book holidays and hotels on their smartphones.
The travel unit accounted for 14% of the company’s total operating profit of £34.5 million in the year ended April 30, 2013 and 15% of the company’s total revenue of £132.5 million.
The company said in December that its travel division was slightly ahead of the board’s expectations, reporting an encouraging increase in profit as it continued to build its underlying recurring revenue base as more deployments of @com went live and entered the maintenance and support phase.
Anite confirmed in February that it was working with advisers at Evercore Partners to weigh up options for the unit including a sale.
The disposal will allow Anite to focus on its mobile and network testing.
It is understood that Carlyle Group and ECI had previously expressed an interest in the business.
Anite said it expects to report full-year revenue and adjusted operating profit in line with expectations when it issues its final results on July 2.