Capgemini to divest US unit over ICE contract after pressure from French lawmakers

French tech giant Capgemini said in a press release on Sunday that it will sell a US subsidiary that held a contract with US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The company said "legal constraints" prevented it from controlling the subsidiary's operations. Capgemini has faced pressure from French lawmakers and its trade union over the business, the firm said.

Public records show Capgemini Government Solutions had been under contract since December to provide software that can detect and locate foreign nationals. Capgemini's CEO Aiman Ezzat wrote on LinkedIn that the company was recently made aware of "the nature and scope of this work," and that it raised questions about the firm's activities.

The company said the subsidiary accounted for 0.4% of its revenue last year and that the process to divest it would begin immediately. The $26 billion software firm is among France's largest listed companies. The decision comes amid intensified anti-ICE protests and calls for boycotts following the recent fatal shootings of Renee Nicole Good and Alex Pretti by federal immigration agents in Minneapolis.

Organizers of a "National Shutdown" called for a 24-hour general strike, and commentator Scott Galloway urged consumers to "opt out" of services such as ChatGPT, Amazon Prime Video, and Microsoft Office to pressure major companies.

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