(Reuters) - Britain's G4S (CO:G4S) Plc, which has been subject to takeover interest from Canada's Garda World Security, said on Tuesday it had made good progress in a review to separate its cash business and reported higher first-quarter revenue.
The world's largest listed security company has been working to rebuild its reputation after a series of scandals, most notably a failure in 2012 to provide enough guards for the Olympic Games in London.
Revenue for the first quarter rose 4.8 percent from a year earlier, driven by a more than 4 percent growth in both its secure solutions and cash solutions businesses.
The company had said in December it was looking to split off its cash business to focus on its security operations and said last month it received interest from potential bidders for the unit, which includes Cash 360 machines operated by retailers and a cash transport business.
"The board believes that a separation has the clear potential to unlock substantial shareholder value," Chief Executive Officer Ashley Almanza said.
The G4S update comes in the light of Garda World Security's announcement last week that it was considering a cash offer for some or all of the British company.