Visa continues M&A run with new FX punt
LONDON, July 22 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Visa (V.N) Chief Executive Al Kelly is continuing to spray money at European technology startups. One month after announcing the $2.1 billion acquisition of Sweden’s Tink read more , the $519 billion payments giant on Thursday announced it is buying London-based Currencycloud, whose software helps banks and technology groups like Revolut shift money across borders, for 700 million pounds ($962 million).
There are good reasons for Visa to buy Currencycloud. It gives it a potentially valuable piece of software in the fast-changing foreign exchange market, where banks face disruption by technology groups. The acquisition will also bolster Visa’s own foreign exchange division, which suffered during the pandemic as people travelled less. And it promises new growth as Visa’s core business of arranging card payments is under pressure from antitrust watchdogs read more . Yet Kelly is paying nearly twice the $500 million at which Currencycloud was valued in January 2020, when Visa first took a stake, according to TechCrunch. Other startups will be beating a path to his door. (By Karen Kwok)
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