Visa's acquisition of the cross-border payments platform is notable given the acquisition comes at 4x the company's previous stock price. The move may indicate increased appetite for M&A and consolidation in the remittance space.
Credit card giant Visa Inc. is acquiring British payments firm Earthport for $250.6 million. Earthport — which provides cross-border payment services to banks and businesses — has been partners with Ripple, the blockchain-based payment network, since 2015. Under the merger, Visa paid four times Earthport’s closing stock price on December 26, Reuters reported. Visa was interested in acquiring Earthport because it wants to expand its cross-border payments business, which spiked 10% in fiscal year 2018.
https://www.ccn.com/visa-acquires-ripple-partner-earthport-for-250-million/
