Mastercard has agreed to acquire the majority of payments processor Nets in a deal worth $3.19bn.
The deal includes the clearing and instant payment services, and e-billing solutions of Net’s business. With the addition of the new technology, Mastercard hopes to improve its existing infrastructure to cater to a wider customer base.
Additionally, the company gains access to end-user solutions such as bill payment and open banking, as well as value-added services like data analytics and fraud protection.
The acquisition will also support Mastercard’s cross-border payments to bank account, mobile wallets and cards.
As the market increases its appetite for real-time payments, Mastercard will use Nets to help provide these services to companies within the Nordic market.
Mastercard chief product and innovation officer Michael Miebach said, “The global opportunity for real-time payments is accelerating. This deal strengthens our unique position as the one-stop partner for any bank, merchant or government’s payment needs. The combination with existing Mastercard assets such as Vocalink, Transfast and Transactis delivers real-time payment capabilities, innovation and expertise that are truly differentiated.”
Nets is a managed services and software business which helps merchants, corporates and banks with their payment needs. Its services include instant payments, direct debit transactions, open banking access, POS terminals, digital and physical, card processing, transaction management, anti-fraud, and digitalisation tools.
With the support of Mastercard, Nets hopes to increase innovation and further its growth within the Nordic region.
The transaction is expected to close during the first half of 2020 and will be subject to regulatory clearances.
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