Wirecard moves into North America with Citi Prepaid Card Services acquisition
Markus Braun, CEO of Wirecard
Wirecard has reached a definitive agreement to acquire Citi Prepaid Card Services – giving it an expansion into North America.
The firm says Citi Prepaid card services have launched over 2,500 client programmes, associated with global companies and brands, but primarily in North America.
Subject to the usual regulatory approvals, the deal is expected to close in Q4 2016. Wirecard will take on more than 100 employees at the head office in Conshohocken (Philadelphia) and 20 employees at different international hubs.
Markus Braun, CEO of Wirecard, says the acquisition “extends” its” global presence” into the North American market.
The customer portfolio of the acquired business consists of telecommunication service providers, health sciences companies, global IT and electronics manufacturers, internet and consumer goods corporations as well as public sector clients. The portfolio is “largely comprised of incentive and compensation cards as well as corporate disbursement programs”. The acquired prepaid card business will integrate with Wirecard’s existing global payments platform.
Wirecard cites research from Global Industry Analytics (GIA), which is forecasting the global prepaid card market will grow to a volume of $3.1 trillion by 2022.
Play your cards right
So far, this year has been busy for Wirecard.
Wirecard and Verifone joined forces to grow their payments business in Asia. The five-year agreement combines Wirecard software and Verifone devices, with Indonesia as the first target market.
Travelex teamed with Wirecard to launch Supercard, a MasterCard and mobile app combo for UK travellers to avoid debit/credit card roaming fees and charges when spending abroad.
Wirecard Singapore, part of Wirecard Group, and NETS (Network for Electronic Transfers {Singapore}) partnered to provide a single terminal payment solution for Singapore government agencies.
