Optimal Payments Set to Acquire Skrill in €1.1bn Merger
European online payments and digital wallets specialist Skrill and Canada-based Optimal Payments have announced a potential union that could create a European digital wallet provider to rival PayPal.
Optimal Payments said that it proposes to purchase Skrill for €1.1bn, creating a combined offering which will include over 100 payment types in 22 languages and 41 currencies around the world.
The deal, which is expected to close by the third quarter of 2015, is subject to shareholder and regulatory approvals, and would see the new combined company join London’s FTSE 250 index.
London-based Skrill offers businesses access to direct payment processing via 100 payment options in 200 countries and territories and 40 currencies. The company has a worldwide customer base of 36m, including over 156,000 businesses. Optimal Payments is best known for its Neteller digital wallet service, which also operates in over 200 countries worldwide.
“The acquisition of Skrill will create a global tech champion in the fast growing digital payments space and we believe represents a transformational leap forward that greatly accelerates our strategic plan,” said Joel Leonoff, president and chief executive (CEO) of Optimal Payments.
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