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| De La Rue Group | |
|---|---|
| Name | De La Rue Group |
| Type | Public limited company |
| Industry | Security printing and papermaking |
| Founded | 1821 |
| Founder | Thomas de la Rue |
| Headquarters | Basingstoke, Hampshire, England |
| Products | Banknotes, passports, security documents, authentication solutions |
De La Rue Group is a multinational security printing and papermaking company founded in 1821 by Thomas de la Rue. The company supplies banknotes, passports, tax stamps, and secure identity solutions to central banks, national governments, and commercial issuers worldwide, and competes with firms such as Giesecke+Devrient, Crane Currency, Glory Limited, Oberthur Technologies, and KBA-NotaSys.
De La Rue Group traces its origins to the printing and stationery business established by Thomas de la Rue in Jamaica and later Guernsey, expanding into lithography and security printing during the 19th century alongside contemporaries like John Baskerville, William Caxton, Whitbread and printers servicing institutions such as the Bank of England and the Royal Mint. In the Victorian era the firm produced playing cards linked to manufacturers such as Bass Brewery and supplied items to royal households including connections with Queen Victoria and the Prince Regent. Throughout the 20th century De La Rue diversified into passport manufacture alongside companies like Harrison and Sons and entered partnerships and rivalries with firms including Robert Ferguson and Thomas Cook. Postwar restructuring, mergers and acquisitions involved interactions with financial institutions such as Barclays and conglomerates like GEC, while late 20th- and early 21st-century developments saw strategic dealings with entities such as PayPal, HSBC, and multinational procurement agencies of the United Nations and the European Union.
The company offers a portfolio spanning polymer banknotes comparable to products from Reserve Bank of Australia projects, traditional cotton paper notes used by clients including the Bank of England and the Federal Reserve peers, passport booklets akin to those issued by Her Majesty's Passport Office and machine-readable travel documents following standards from the International Civil Aviation Organization, tax stamps and excise labels used in programmes like those of HM Revenue and Customs and customs administrations similar to U.S. Customs and Border Protection, secure identity credentials for agencies such as the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and municipal authorities like Transport for London, and authentication technologies used by luxury brands such as Louis Vuitton and Rolex-style supply chains. Ancillary services include cash processing systems used by central banks including the European Central Bank and currency logistics partners like Brinks.
Manufacturing facilities have been located in the United Kingdom at sites near Basingstoke and formerly Guilford, with international operations historically in Sri Lanka, Kenya, and Papua New Guinea to serve clients in regions served by central banks such as the Reserve Bank of India, the Central Bank of Nigeria, and the People's Bank of China. The firm’s production process integrates paper manufacturing technologies related to those developed at institutions such as Voith and De La Rue-style security substrate suppliers, printing presses comparable to those from Koenig & Bauer and Heidelberg, and finishing equipment akin to systems from G&D Mobile Security. Distribution and logistics have involved partnerships with security carriers like G4S and cash-in-transit networks serving entities such as Santander and Standard Chartered.
Listed as a public company, the group has been governed by boards featuring executives and non-executive directors with experience at firms and institutions such as Barclays, Rolls-Royce Holdings, BP, HSBC, and advisory roles linked to policy bodies like the UK Treasury and the Bank of England. Major shareholders and activist investors in the company’s recent history have included hedge funds and institutional investors similar to Elliott Management and BlackRock, and its governance has faced scrutiny in contexts also involving regulatory bodies such as the Financial Conduct Authority and stock exchanges like the London Stock Exchange.
The group’s revenue streams derive from long-term contracts with central banks and governments analogous to arrangements held by Giesecke+Devrient and commercial contracts with multinational brands and banks including Citigroup and Deutsche Bank. Financial results have reflected capital expenditure cycles for plant modernisation similar to investments announced by Crane Co. and periodic impacts from currency volatility tied to operations in markets such as South Africa and Indonesia. The company’s share performance and reported earnings have been monitored by analysts at brokerages like Goldman Sachs and Barclays Capital and have been influenced by contract awards and losses comparable to publicised events in the security printing sector.
The company has been involved in disputes and controversies including contract award challenges resembling litigation seen in procurements with parties like G4S and Securitas, investigations into procurement procedures in jurisdictions analogous to probes involving Siemens and Boeing, and regulatory scrutiny over compliance practices similar to cases involving Standard Chartered. Legal outcomes have included arbitration and settlement processes akin to those pursued before institutions such as the London Court of International Arbitration and the International Chamber of Commerce, and public attention has been drawn in instances comparable to controversies experienced by Deutsche Bank in reputational management.
Research and development activities focus on anti-counterfeiting technologies and substrate innovation comparable to work at Crane Currency and Giesecke+Devrient, including polymer substrates first commercialised in programmes like the Reserve Bank of Australia series, optically variable inks used in projects with central banks such as the Reserve Bank of India, holographic devices akin to systems from De La Rue-era collaborators with Optaglio and Holostik, micro-optic security threads similar to technologies developed by 3M partners, and machine-readable security elements adhering to standards established by the International Organization for Standardization and the International Civil Aviation Organization. Collaborations in innovation have involved technology partners and research bodies such as Cambridge University, Imperial College London, TÜV SÜD, and industry groups including The Currency Research.
Category:Printing companies of the United Kingdom Category:Security printing