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| The sale is expected to help Dell pay down debt from its $67bn purchase of EMC |
Dell is near closing the sale of its IT consultancy branch to a Japanese company for over $3bn (£2.1bn).
The PC maker is planning to use the money to trim some of the $43bn (£30.3bn) debt it has pending its $67bn (£44bn) purchase of EMC. It is selling the IT consulting division for $3.05bn (£2.1bn), according to Reuters.
Dell's takeover of data storage provider EMC is the biggest in technology history. When finalised it will create the world's largest privately-held technology company. The move is part of the US computer maker's plan to transition from a hardware manufacturer to an IT services giant.
Once the most popular PC manufacturer in the world, Dell went private for $24bn in 2013 as sales in the PC market plummeted. The company is arranging billions in debt financing to secure the EMC purchase, which is awaiting EMC shareholder approval in a vote expected in May.
NTT Data, the former telephone monopoly in Japan, hopes the purchase will boost its services business and help it grow in the US, where it plans to launch services in healthcare, insurance and financial services.
Currently its main rivals are Tata Consultancy Services, Atos, and Cognizant Technology Solutions. It is the Japanese company’s biggest takeover to date and will involve it taking on 28,000 employees in North America and India.
“NTT DATA and Dell Services will be a winning combination for Dell Services customers,” said Michael Dell, chief executive of Dell.
The division being sold started life as Perot Systems, created by US presidential candidate Ross Perot, which Dell bought in 2009 for $3.9bn (£2.57bn).
Dell is also hoping to sell Quest Software and SonicWall for up to $4bn (£2.8bn).
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