Verisure
Verisure P.L.C. (formerly known as Securitas Direct) is a security company based in Versoix, close to Geneva in Switzerland and active in 17 countries in Europe and South America and provides security services to 5.7 million families and businesses. Hellman & Friedman is currently the main shareholder in the group but announced plans to take the company public in October 2025.
Overview
Verisure P.L.C. (formerly known as Securitas Direct) is a security company based in Versoix, close to Geneva in Switzerland and active in 17 countries in Europe and South America and provides security services to 5.7 million families and businesses. Hellman & Friedman is currently the main shareholder in the group but announced plans to take the company public in October 2025. The name Securitas Direct is used in two of the group's most prominent markets, Spain and Portugal, but may eventually change to the Verisure name. The Swedish unit addressing the business segment holds the name Securitas Direct and will not change to Verisure.
History
Verisure was founded in 1988 in Sweden by Dick Seger, under the name Securitas Direct and within Securitas AB, which was founded in 1934. Then it turned into an independent company and during the 1990s the expanded into Europe and Latin America. In 1993, the company established remote monitoring and response services manned by human operators. By 1996, it introduced a service tailored for small businesses, with exceptions for high-risk businesses like jewelry stores and banks. The company was acquired by the Securitas group, a global leader in security services, in 1997. Starting in 1999, GSM transmission technology was implemented, followed a year later by the development of an internal mobile application for the sales team. Becoming Verisure in 2009, the new name of Securitas Direct's consumer branch, this corporate name has changed to Verisure in 2011. It was listed at Nasdaq OMX Stockholm in 2006, when it was distributed to the shareholders of Securitas AB. In 2008, the company was bought by ESML Intressenter AB and delisted. In 2011, EQT sold the company to Bain Capital and Hellman & Friedman for €2.3bn. In a judgement from April 2015 the district court of Amsterdam, The Netherlands, ruled that the direct canvassing (doorstep selling directly to consumers), with alarm systems and associated multiyear PAC subscriptions, one of the primary commercial practices of Verisure (Securitas Direct), is unlawful towards consumers. In the 2020s, the group is expanding, driven by a favorable market. In September 2025, the group announced plans to go public and list on the Nasdaq Stockholm. The company said it was targeting a valuation of €12.9–13.9 billion, which would be the largest IPO in Europe since 2022. The company completed the offering the following month, raising €3.2bn at a €13.7bn valuation.
Countries
The group operates in Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, UK, Ireland, Argentina, Brazil, Chile and Peru. Recently open operations in Mexico after buying ADT alarm business company
Argentina
In 2022 the Argentinian subsidiary starts to market the anti-burglary fog. The company wants to invest 200 million dollars in the next decade to develop the business in the subsidiary.
Belgium
The creation of the Belgian subsidiary is the result of the takeover of Belgacom S.A. by Securitas Direct in 2001.
Brazil
The company has been expanding in Brazil since 2011. In 2020 it has 100,000 customers and 700 employees and has become the most present company in this sector in the country.
France
The French subsidiary have 640,000 customers by 2022, making it the second largest in the group after the Spanish subsidiary. Its head office is located in Antony, the company also has offices in Sainghin-en-Mélantois and Angers.
Brand name
The French subsidiary has had many names, from SDF Sécurité at its creation to SDF significant Sécurité de France. The possible confusion with the SDF acronym, meaning homeless people in French, led to a name change to Domen, then Domen Sécurité, Securitas Domen, then Securitas Direct and finally Verisure. Securitas Direct should not be confused with the Securitas AB group, which is specialized in private security services for large companies and industries. The two companies were no longer linked after the IPO of Securitas Direct in 2006. Before fully using the name Verisure, the French subsidiary temporarily used the name "Verisure by Securitas Direct" in 2011. Verisure is thus gradually becoming the official name of the company in the countries where it operates, with the transition being finalized in April 2020.
History
1988: the company was created in May with marketing in June by the structure HD 2000, HD being the initials of "Habiter Demain", meaning living tomorrow in French, within the EDF-GDF group and at the initiative of the Caisse des dépôts et consignations. The Caisse des Dépôts et Consignations holds 52% of the shares and EDF holds 28%. The city chosen was Rennes, where HD 2000 was located, the director was Christian Arsac, and the company's initial name was SDF - Sécurité. 1997: joining the Securitas AB group, the company is then called Securitas Direct. 1998: use of Secom alarms allowing wireless communication. 2006: Securitas Direct is listed on the Stockholm Stock Exchange and becomes an independent company. 2013: Stéphane Plaza becomes the brand ambassador via the M6 Group. 2015: use of the Sigfox network for a link with alarms via an anti-jamming low frequency network. The company acquires its competitor Mediaveil recovering the patent of the opacifying fog. 2022: launch of a new system including 4G and an Arlo camera using artificial intelligence. One of the objectives is to solve certain problems encountered.
Partnership
A partnership was set up with Somfy, via the Tahoma box, in April 2016. Home automation functionalities can then be included in the offer, this partnership then ceased, as Somfy created its own remote surveillance. A partnership with Covéa was launched in 2017: it allows customers of both Verisure and MMA, MAAF or GMF to not pay a deductible in case of burglary. In 2022 the partnership was renewed.
Strikes
Several strikes have been reported in the press within the company: in 2015, 2016 and 2022. In March 2015, a hundred employees were mobilized at the Châtenay site. The CGT is concerned about the relocation to the site in the North. The local CFDT denounces the lowest salaries in the sector with barely more than €1,500 and bonuses on objectives "unattainable, unless you work impossible hours!". The management indicates to review the remuneration which encourages the strikers to stop their movement, it also had to commit to pay the three days of strikes, not to start the mandatory annual negotiations with less than 2% increase in the wage bill and not to relocate. In December 2015, some of the remote surveillance operators went on strike in Sainghin-en-Mélantois. The employees denounced low wages in view of the working conditions: "We work seven days a week, including holidays, but we are not entitled to bonuses like the technicians." They also mention a constant pressure: "We are understaffed which leaves us no second of respite". In March 2016 some of the staff, mainly agents in charge of remote monitoring, went on strike. The strikers denounced the low wages as well as the pressure from management to obtain more productivity. The mandatory annual negotiations demands were not met, with employees and management blaming each other. The employees concerned were partially successful in 2018 with the gradual introduction of a thirteenth month for non-managers and an attendance bonus. In March 2022, a spontaneous strike was launched without the initiative of the trade unions, with demands for higher wages and better conditions. The movement was stopped 12 days later without the strikers having been able to win their case.
Germany
Verisure opened its German headquarters in Ratingen near Düsseldorf in November 2018. This is also the location of the emergency call and service control center (NSL) for German customers, which was certified in 2020 by VdS Schadenverhütung GmbH. The company has branches in Hesse, Rhineland-Palatinate, Berlin, Baden-Württemberg and, most recently, in Hamburg in 2021.
Wikipedia contributors · Verisure · revision 1380046930 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Plain text extracted and formatting adapted; tags derived from linked topics.