Worldpay sold to US software giant for £32bn

WorLDPAY is being bought by a US rival in a £32.5bn deal that creates one of the world’s largest payment firms.

The business, once owned by royal Bank of Scotland, is being snapped up by Floridabased Fidelity National Information Services (FIS).

The takeover is part of a global battle to control the payment processing industry, which is seen as a massive source of future profits as more spending goes online.

Handling 40bn transactions a year in 146 countries and 126 currencies, Worldpay is one of the most powerful players in the sector. It supplies technology for card readers at shopping tills across the world, and is also a key operator online.

It was founded by entrepreneur Nick ogden and sold to rBS in 2002. rBS sold Worldpay for £2bn in 2010 as part of an agreement with competition watchdogs to loosen the bank’s stranglehold on British finance after it was rescued from collapse by taxpayers.

The payments company was bought by investors including Bain Capital, floated on the stock exchange, and sold again in 2018 which saw it snapped up by US-listed Vantiv, which kept Worldpay as the combined group’s name.

The FIS takeover will see Worldpay’s shareholders get a mix of cash and shares, leaving them with a 47pc stake in the combined firm. FIS shareholders would control 53pc. The deal values Worldpay at £32.5bn, 13pc more than its closing price on Friday night.

Gary Norcross, chairman and chief executive of FIS, will run the combined group.

Worldpay’s boss Charles Drucker will stay as executive vice-chairman.

A source close to the deal added: ‘This was an opportunistic move by FIS and was primarily triggered by the need to stay ahead of competitors.’