Malaysian government weighing buyout of passport supplier Datasonic, parent firm says

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 21 : The Malaysian government is considering acquiring Datasonic Technologies Sdn Bhd, the supplier of the country’s passports and national identity cards, with the firm preliminarily valued at 7.5 billion ringgit ($1.86 billion), its parent company said on Friday. • NexG Berhad said in a bourse filing it was asked during a meeting with the finance ministry in July to provide an indicative price for the possible acquisition of Datasonic, its wholly-owned unit.• Malaysia's finance ministry declined to comment on the potential acquisition.• The indicative value for Datasonic was based on an internal assessment by NexG's management and did not constitute an independent valuation, agreed transaction value, or a firm offer, the company said. • "Any potential transaction remain