Visa shopping in Sweden. The US credit card giant has bought the startup Tink, owner of a European open banking platform, paying out 1,8 billion euros ($2,1 billion). The deal was announced today, Thursday 24 June, by the company itself. An operation that somehow also involves Poste Italiane which sold its 4,7% stake in Tink to the Visa group, realizing 18 times the value of the initial investment in just 3,5 months.
As expected, Tink will retain its brand as well as the management team. In addition, the company's headquarters will remain in Stockholm, Sweden. The platform is integrated with more than 3.400 banks and financial institutions for millions of banking customers throughout Europe and will allow Visa to penetrate in a capillary way the open banking of the old continent.
The operation - says the company in a note - will be financed with liquidity already available and the acquisition will not have no impact on the share repurchase programme previously announced or on the dividend policy,
“Visa is committed to doing all it can to drive innovation and empower consumers in support of the goals of open banking in Europe,” he said. CEO and Chairman Al Kelly. “By bringing together Visa's network and Tink's open banking capabilities, we will deliver greater value to European consumers and businesses with tools to make their financial lives easier, more reliable and more secure,” he added.
Recall that in January Visa and fintech Plaid canceled their $5,3 billion merger deal following a US government lawsuit related to antitrust grounds.
