Payment giant Worldpay agrees to £9 billion buyout
(6 July 2017 – Global) Worldpay has revealed a £9.1 billion (A$15.5 billion) deal with US card technology group Vantiv.
Worldpay shares closed 28 percent higher following its announcement that it had received seperate preliminary approaches from US-based bank JP Morgan Chase and Vantiv over a potential takeover.
Under the terms of the predominantly all-share deal, Vantiv values Worldpay shares at 385 pence a piece, and will pay a 5 pence dividend to shareholders. This values Worldpay at £7.7 billion, plus £1.4 billion to cover debts.
The merger would create a globe-straddling payments group providing a comprehensive range of merchant services across online and instore channels. The two companies say they see substantial cost synergies from a deal, and the potential for strong revenue growth by leveraging at-scale engineering and innovation at the company's three hubs in the UK, Europe and US.
The newly-combined group would operate under the leadership of two chief executives, Vantiv's Charles Drucker and Worldpay's Philip Jansen, located at their respective bases in Cincinnati and London.
The deal is the latest in a string of acquisitions by Vantiv, following last year's US$406.8 million takeover of the American arm of Moneris Solutions Corporation, and an agreement struck in April to buy Paymetric for an undisclosed amount.
Upon completion Worldpay Shares will be delisted from the London Stock Exchange with common stock traded on the New York Stock Exchange.
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