Gen Digital (GEN) has made an initial takeover approach for GoDaddy (GDDY) as it seeks to expand beyond cybersecurity and privacy technology, the Financial Times reported Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter.

Terms of the proposal were not immediately known, according to the report. The initial offer was made in recent weeks, the report said.

Talks are in the early stages with no guarantee of a deal, while an acquisition would give Gen Digital access to GoDaddy's more than 20 million small-business and individual customers and roughly 81 million web domains, the report added.

Gen Digital shares were down 3.8%, while GoDaddy shares were up 10% in Thursday trading.

Gen Digital and GoDaddy did not reply to a request for comment from MT Newswires.

(Market Chatter news is derived from conversations with market professionals globally. This information is believed to be from reliable sources but may include rumor and speculation. Accuracy is not guaranteed.)

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