The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has approved Global Payments’ $22.7 billion acquisition of Worldpay.
Global Payments initiated this significant deal to purchase Worldpay from GTRC and FIS while simultaneously selling its Issuer Solutions business to FIS for $13.5 billion in April. After soliciting feedback on the proposed acquisition in July, the CMA launched an inquiry in September, which has now concluded.
A separate investigation into FIS’s planned acquisition of Global Payments’ Issuer Solutions business, Tsys, is still ongoing. On October 10, the CMA rejected the merger notice due to insufficient information, stating that it will resume its formal investigation once a complete notice is submitted.
In announcing the acquisition, Global Payments reported that, as a combined entity, it will serve over six million customers and facilitate around 94 billion transactions, amounting to $3.7 trillion in volume across more than 175 countries. CEO Cameron Bready remarked, “The acquisition of Worldpay and divestiture of Issuer Solutions further sharpen our strategic focus and simplify Global Payments as a pure play merchant solutions business with significantly expanded capabilities, extensive scale, greater market access, and an enhanced financial profile.”