Massachusetts currency manufacturer sold for $800M

The Massachusetts company that for nearly 140 years has supplied the paper used to make U.S. currency has been sold for $800 million to a similarly named Connecticut company.

Stamford, Connecticut-based Crane Co. on Tuesday announced that it has agreed to buy 100 percent of the equity interests in Boston-based Crane & Co. Inc. — also known as Crane Currency — from private equity firm Lindsay Goldberg and shareholders including members of the Crane family.

Crane Co., founded in 1855, provides products in the hydrocarbon processing, petrochemical, power generation, aerospace and other markets.

Crane Currency, founded in 1801 in Dalton, Massachusetts, is a pioneer in micro-optic security technology and a supplier of secure banknotes for central banks worldwide. Although corporate headquarters are now in Boston, it maintains a facility in Dalton.