Advent, a private equity group, is expected to pay US$6.3 billion to purchase Canadian paytech company Nuvei.

Through the agreement, Nuvei, which is supported by actor-turned-entrepreneur Ryan Reynolds in Hollywood, would go private after four years of trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange.

The bulk of the shares held by current owners Philip Fayer, who serves as Nuvei's chair and CEO, Novacap, and CDPQ will be carried over, allowing them to retain 24%, 18%, and 12% of the company, respectively.

Nuvei: Leveraging technology to propel growth

As a global leader in payments today, Nuvei supports the expansion of its clients and partners across the globe with its adaptable and modular payments solution, which lets businesses offer next-generation payments, provide every payout option, and take advantage of risk and fraud management, banking, card issuing, and other services.

Since its founding in 2003, Nuvei has grown from its home country of Canada to provide paytech solutions in more than 200 markets, including 50 local markets for acquisition and up to 680 local and/or alternative payment methods connected to the platform.

Nuvei discussed how its patented solutions are assisting businesses in optimizing income streams in an interview with FinTech Magazine in February of this year.

CEO Philip Fayer says, "We are happy to partner with Advent to continue to deliver for our customers and employees and capitalise on the significant opportunities that this investment provides." Nuvei is about to embark on an exciting new chapter following its impending acquisition by Advent.

"We have always prioritized growing our workforce, fostering technological innovation throughout our organization, and increasing our clients' income. Adding a partner with this level of payments industry knowledge will help us grow even further."

Details of Advent & Nuvei: The agreement
Nuvei shareholders have been offered a 56% premium at US$34.00 a share in cash over the stock's last Nasdaq closing on March 15, 2024, which occurred before the media began to publish on the possibility of an acquisition.

As of March 15, 2024, Advent's price per share represents a premium of almost 48% above Nuvei's 90-day volume weighted average trading price, translating into a total purchase cost of US$6.3 billion.

The transaction follows a period of decreased M&A activity in late 2023, but it indicates that the investment market may be turning the corner, along with other acquisitions like Capital One's proposed US$35.3 billion merger of Discover Financial

"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," says Bo Huang, a managing director at Advent.

Our extensive knowledge and background in payments make us confident in our ability to help Nuvei grow from its Canadian foundation to become a major player in the industry.

"We are eager to work closely with Nuvei to take advantage of new opportunities and influence the direction of the payments sector."