US-based Payoneer has acquired Armor Payments as it looks to create a “global alternative” to letters of credit (LCs). Armor Payments, co-founded by former PayPal Director, Scott Reynolds, is the “only licensed B2B payments provider offering Escrow-as-a-Service (EaaS)”. Through the acquisition, the new integrated Armor Payments Payoneer Escrow solution will allow B2B buyers and suppliers […]
MasterCard’s planned acquisition of VocaLink has the potential to create a new payments powerhouse in Europe and beyond. Tom Hay, head of payments, Icon Solutions, explores the possibilities. The news of the planned acquisition broke a few days after the Payment Systems Regulator’s (PSR) recommendation that banks divest their ownership of the company. I’m sure […]
Catch up on Banking Technology’s top five fintech stories of the week – all in one place! MasterCard mulls VocaLink acquisition There are some things money can buy. US to move to shorter T+2 settlement cycle by September 2017 Make a note, industry target has been unveiled. Big US banks to fight for instant payments […]
Nasdaq has bought International Securities Exchange (ISE), operator of three US equity options exchanges, and ISE’s holding company US Exchange Holdings, from Deutsche Börse for $1.1 billion. The agreement excludes ownership interest in Bats Global Market and in Digital Asset Holdings, which will continue to be owned by Deutsche Börse. Carsten Kengeter, CEO of Deutsche […]
Equiniti Group has completed the purchase of Risk Factor and KYCnet. The acquisitions are part of Equiniti’s strategy of buying specialist technology platforms to provide regulation driven services for its clients. Last year it bought Transglobal Payment Solutions, while back in 2012 it acquired investment system supplier Peterevans. It also purchased a UK-based lending software […]
BBVA has acquired Finnish online-only payments and banking services provider Holvi, as it seeks to expand its portfolio of digital businesses. Holvi will continue to be run as a standalone business, and Spain-based BBVA says there will be a “two-way flow of knowledge, ideas and support” between both parties. Teppo Paavola, chief development officer and […]
MasterCard could be buying the UK’s payments infrastructure, VocaLink, in a £1-billion acquisition, according to Sky News. Following the Payment Systems Regulator (PSR) telling banks last month that they should sell their stake in VocaLink to “help increase innovation and competition”, MasterCard is reportedly in talk with those banks. According to David Bannister, financial services […]
AnaCap Financial Partners, a private equity firm based in the UK, has acquired non-performing loans (NPLs) of Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) and GE Capital Real Estate in Italy. It is also understood to be crystallising a strategy to launch a new digital bank in the UK. The acquisitive PE firm has gained over €2 […]
New York Stock Exchange owner, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), says it may make a rival bid for London Stock Exchange (LSE) – setting up a potential takeover battle with Deutsche Börse. ICE says an approach on the LSE hasn’t been made yet, but the speculation lifted LSE shares to a record high today (1 March 2016). […]
Barclays is leaving Africa as it looks to consolidate the group and increase shareholder returns after a 2% drop in full-year profit. The bank will sell its 62% stake in Barclays Africa Group Limited (BAGL) over the coming few years and then focus on two divisions – Barclays UK and Barclays Corporate and International. BAGL […]
Spain’s Bolsas y Mercados Españoles (BME) has bought securities information provider Infobolsa from Deutsche Börse for €8.2 million in cash. The agreement also includes the acquisition of Infobolsa’s wholly-owned subsidiaries: Difubolsa (Serviços de Difusão e Informação de Bolsa) and Infobolsa Deutschland. Consequently, BME, through Infobolsa, will also become the owner of Open Finance, another Spanish […]
Paris-based Sopra Steria plans a tie-up with Cassiopae, a developer of specialised finance management software. Sopra Steria plans to acquire, through its subsidiary Sopra Banking Software, about 75% of KSEOP, Cassiopae’s holding company. The founder and his family, and certain managers including the current chairman of Cassiopae, Emmanuel Gillet, will retain about 25% of the […]
Deutsche Börse and the London Stock Exchange (LSE) have confirmed they are in “detailed” discussions about a potential “merger of equals” of the two businesses. The announcement saw shares in the LSE and Deutsche Börse rise 17% and 7% respectively. It is the third time they have tried to make a deal, the first attempt […]
Payments provider TSYS is predicting high single-figure growth following its acquisition of merchant solutions provider Transfirst in a $2.35 billion all-cash transaction. The deal, announced as TSYS reports its full-year 2015 results, will create a firm with that TSYS claims will be the third largest integrated payments provider in the US – according to a […]
