Visa to acquire majority stake in Mexican payment processor Prosa
Payments giant Visa has entered a definitive agreement to acquire a majority stake in Mexican payment processor Prosa in a bid to bolster the country’s adoption of digital payments.
Visa to acquire majority interest in Mexican payment processor Prosa
The deal, for an undisclosed sum, is expected to close in the second half of 2024 once regulatory approvals are secured and customary closing conditions are met.
As part of the agreement, Prosa will continue to operate as an independent entity and utilise its own technology, while Visa will help expand its product offerings and share knowledge and experience with Prosa’s leadership — all of whom will be retained.
Its existing shareholders including Banorte, HSBC Mexico, Invex, Santander Mexico, Scotiabank Mexico and Banjército will continue to own the remaining portion of the company.
Eduardo Coello, regional president for Visa Latin America and the Caribbean, says the acquisition forms part of Visa’s strategy to build a “‘network of networks” by bringing global technologies under its wing “to complement our own”.
“With the enhanced technology infrastructure provided by Visa’s global payments network, we are setting the groundwork to develop new, innovative ways to pay and be paid for consumers and small businesses alike alongside local issuers and acquirers in Mexico.”
Through its investment, Visa hopes to bring traction to the Mexican payment market and enable its payments ecosystem to evolve and bring more services and solutions “to incentivise greater competition in the Mexican market for the benefit of consumers”.
This includes enabling Prosa’s customers to offer more digital options that expand acceptance for micro and small businesses, and Visa products that enable them to extract valuable insights from data to help make informed decisions, optimise revenue and customer experience, while streamlining processes.
Over time, Visa also plans to roll out AI-led fraud risk management tools for a more secure transaction experience for consumers as well as merchants.
A company established more than 50 years ago, Prosa claims to have a “strong client base of both issuers and acquirers” in Mexico, processing over 10 billion transactions each year. According to Reuters, the company was reportedly seeking a sale since 2021 and back then, was potentially valued at more than $1 billion.
