(25 June 2021 – Europe) Visa is set to acquire Swedish open banking Financial Technology (FinTech) company Tink worth €1.8 billion seeking diversified revenues beyond traditional credit card payments.
Tink is an open banking platform that enable financial institutions to offer bespoke products and services to businesses based on their financial data. Tink currently operates across Europe with 350 employees and 13 offices throughout the region.
The group has integrated with more than 3,400 banks and financial institutions operating within Europe and plans to expand their business into additional markets.
Payments companies have been facing increased pressure from European Union (EU) regulators on fees. In addition, EU rules on open banking require banks to allow access to customer data by registered third party providers to boost competition. Visa terminated a planned US$5.3 billion deal with data-sharing platform Plaid in Q1 2021, following a US government lawsuit aimed at blocking the deal on antitrust grounds, and Fintech pundits suggest the Tink acquisition could face antitrust concerns also in line with the failed Plaid deal.
“Visa is committed to doing all we can to foster innovation and empower consumers in support of Europe’s Open Banking goals. By bringing together Visa’s network of networks and Tink’s open banking capabilities we will deliver increased value to European businesses with tools to make their financial management more simple, reliable, and secure” commented Visa Chief Executive and Chairman, Alfred Kelly
“For the past ten years we have worked relentlessly to build Tink into a leading Open Banking platform in Europe, and we are incredibly proud of what the whole team at Tink has created together. We have built something incredible and at the same time we have only scratched the surface. Joining Visa, we will be able to move faster and reach further than ever before” commented Tink Chief Executive, Daniel Kjellen