Three weeks after the firm confirmed it had received interest from prospective buyers, Nuvei has been purchased by private equity group Advent International.
The Montreal-based payments solutions provider will be purchased by Advent for US$34 per share, putting the total valuation of the company at $6.3bn. Philip Fayer will retain his position as Chairman and CEO of the group, as well as holding 28% share equity.
In addition to Fayer, Canadian shareholders Novacap Management and CDPG will retain respective shareholdings of 18% and 12%, The remaining shares will be held by Advent.
In its announcement of the transaction Nuvei asserted that it stands to benefit from ‘significant resources, operational, and sector expertise’ as a result of the agreement, due to Advent being a ‘longstanding investor in the payments space’.
Fayer remarked: “This transaction marks the beginning of an exciting new chapter for Nuvei, and we are glad to partner with Advent to continue to deliver for our customers and employees and capitalise on the significant opportunities that this investment provides.
“Our strategic initiatives have always focused on accelerating our customers’ revenue, driving innovation across our technology, and developing our people. Bringing in a partner with such extensive experience in the payments sector will continue to support our development.”
With Fayer, Novocap and CPDG holding a combined voting power of 92% of Nuvei shares, the transaction is already close to the finishing line.
However, it still requires the approval of remaining Nuvei shareholders, but the company’s Board of Directors has unanimously recommended the takeover and encouraged stakeholders to vote in favour.
Rumours of Nuvei potentially being taken private began to circulate in the first half of March. This prompted the company to address media reports, confirming that ‘expressions of interest’ had been heard from buyers about a potential transaction involving ‘significant ownership’ of shares in the firm.
Upon completion of the transaction later this year, Nuvei expects to delist from both the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX) and the Nasdaq, to cease being a reporting issuer in Canada and deregister from the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
As noted by Nuvei, Advent is a long-term investor in the payments space, and it is one of the 300 biggest private equity firms globally. The company owns notable fintech and payments companies such as Mangopay, and is a former owner of Worldpay.
Bo Huang, Managing Director at Advent, remarked: “Nuvei has created a differentiated global payments platform with an innovative product offering that serves attractive payments end markets like global eCommerce, B2B and embedded payments.
“Our deep expertise and experience in payments give us conviction in the opportunity to support Nuvei as it continues to scale from its base in Canada as a global player in the space.
“We look forward to collaborating closely with Nuvei to capitalise on emerging opportunities to help shape the future of the payments industry.”
