In a 2.75 billion USD transaction, Worldline announced the acquisition of the payment unit of Swiss stock exchange SIX Group.
The acquisition deal is composed of an issue of shares along with a cash component of 0.28 billion euros (333.59 million USD). SIX Payment Services is valued at 2.30 billion euros.
SIX Payment Services will hold a 27% stake in Worldline, while Atos will retain its majority 51% shares in the French company.
The new strategic partnership is highlighted as consolidating European payments. Gilles Grapinet, Worldline CEO, said: “Through this merger, our Company with its intact financial firepower and its unrivalled size in our continent, will be better positioned than ever to continue its strategic endeavor to build, in the heart of Europe, a new global leader of the payment industry.”
Romeo Lacher, Chairman of the Board of Directors of SIX said: "This strategic partnership makes us Europe's leading and largest provider in one go. In the future, in addition to the existing SIX Payment Services offering, our customers will also benefit from Worldline's innovative solutions along the entire value chain of cashless payment transactions".
The takeover, which is due to close in the last quarter of 2018, is expected to boost earnings and result in cost savings. A 30% group revenue increase is expected, along with a 65% increase in merchant services business reaching over 1 billion annual revenue. This major strategic transformation will settle the group as market leader in Switzerland, Austria, Luxembourg, as well as reinforce their position on the German market.
SIX Payment Services delivers at scale, both commercial acquiring and financial processing services. In the past years, it reinforced its position through numerous cross-border acquisitions, including Paylife in Austria (2013), Cetrel in Luxembourg (2014) and, last year, a subsidiary of VÖB-ZVD in Germany and Aduno, its competitor in Switzerland. Leading the DACH markets, SIX Payment Services will bring in an estimated 530 million euros in net revenue. The company employs approximately 1,600 staff and maintains a significant direct presence in 6 countries.
Worldline delivers new-generation services, enabling its customers to offer smooth and innovative solutions to the end consumer. The France-based company supports and contributes to the success of all businesses and administrative services in a perpetually evolving market. Worldline offers a unique and flexible business model built around a global and growing portfolio, thus enabling end-to-end support. Worldline employs more than 9,400 people in 56 offices spread across Asia, Europe and Latin America. The Atos company makes an estimated yearly revenue of 1.6 billion euros.
