AIB has formed a joint venture with First Data to acquire Payzone, Ireland's largest consumer payments network.
The joint venture, which will be 75% owned by AIB and 25% owned by FDC, will acquire a 95.9% ownership interest in Payzone from existing shareholders including Carlyle Cardinal Ireland Fund for an enterprise value of up to €100 million.
Payzone processes consumer payments by cash, card and card-not-present for a 300,000-strong user base across over 7000 retail outlets, offering mobile phone top ups, card transactions, motorway toll and parking payments and bill payment services.
For the year ended 30 September 2018, Payzone posted a loss before tax of €0.2 million having reported exceptional items of €0.8 million.
AIB and First Data will shell out €61 million as the initial cash consideration for their stake, and settle approximately €25 million in debt on completion.
A further €11 million will be forthcoming upon meeting agreed performance targets. A mechansim has also been agreed for the acquisition of the remaining 4.1% stake in the company which is currently owned by the Payzone management team.
Colin Hunt, chief executive officer of AIB, says: “For AIB, this transaction means acquiring significant fintech capability and Payzone’s substantial payments footprint in Ireland. This will allow AIB to continue to evolve and enhance our customer offering, enable us to pioneer digital ecosystem products and services and represents growth potential."