Rapyd Acquires PayU GPO to Expand Fintech and Payments Solutions Globally
Rapyd, the leading global Fintech-as-a-Service provider, announced today the acquisition of PayU Global Payment Organisation (‘GPO’; not including PayU’s India, Turkey and Southeast Asia operations) of Netherlands-based Prosus (AEX:PRX; XJSE:PRX), a global consumer internet group and one of the largest technology investors in the world. PayU GPO, a leading provider of best-in-class payment solutions to both enterprise and SMB segments in emerging markets, operates in over 30 countries worldwide. Rapyd will purchase PayU GPO for $610 million.
Rapyd’s industry-leading fintech platform, extensive global payments network, and local markets expertise, coupled with the acquisition of PayU GPO, further solidifies Rapyd’s position as a dominant global fintech leader continuing the company’s trajectory towards an IPO. The acquisition is a strategic move that continues the company’s global expansion across emerging markets in Central and Eastern Europe and Latin America. Combined with PayU GPO, Rapyd boasts an unprecedented:
- 100+ transacting countries
- Over 250,000 merchant clients globally
- Expansion of the Rapyd Global Payments Network to over 1,200 payment methods supported by 18 settlement hubs
- 41 countries that are licensed or regulated
- A portfolio of Tier 1 enterprise clients including Adidas, Google, Ikea, Meta, Netflix, Rappi and Uber
- A wide range of partner channels that acquire SMB merchants including integrated software vendors (ISVs), independent sales organizations (ISOs) and payment facilitators (PayFacs)
- A combined global workforce of 1700, working in 22 offices worldwide and representing 50+ nationalities
Commenting on the acquisition, Rapyd CEO and co-Founder Arik Shtilman stated, “Rapyd’s been on a mission to build bold, and our global expansion continues unabated with a nearly 100% year-over-year growth rate in 2023. Our strategy focusing on both organic growth and acquisitions uniquely positions Rapyd to be one of the largest integrated global fintechs in the world, clearly delivering on our vision of a single, integrated Fintech-as-a-Service platform.”
Following Rapyd’s recent leadership announcements, customer wins, new partnership agreements and product innovations, the company has also actively pursued acquisition opportunities, targeting strong payments companies to enhance their capabilities by connecting them to the Rapyd Global Payments Network.
Mr. Shtilman added, “The synergies with PayU GPO include a richer technology stack, expanded geographic licensing, and broader market reach for our combined merchant portfolios. We’re helping businesses around the world liberate global commerce, and we’re very excited to have PayU’s GPO team join us on this journey.”
Laurent le Moal, PayU Chief Executive Officer stated, “PayU GPO payment business has been an integral part of PayU’s success and it was extremely important to us to work with a visionary company like Rapyd, one that can truly expand our solutions and meet the evolving needs of the dynamic fintech landscape across the globe. Our team is looking forward to joining with Rapyd to build the ultimate global payments platform.”
As global commerce opportunities continue to expand, businesses and software developers are seeking comprehensive payment solutions that can be embedded into any application or business process to accept, receive and move money worldwide. The need to support a wide variety of use cases from accepting payments using locally preferred methods to paying out businesses and individuals across borders, and issuing cards and credit is only growing. Businesses can replace multiple bank accounts, processors and local payments providers with just one Rapyd relationship.
The acquisition of PayU GPO expands Rapyd’s global reach, strengthening its position in key vertical markets including eCommerce, logistics and transportation. It also reduces the complexity of building and launching new applications with some of the most comprehensive cross-border payments and commerce technology available to businesses globally.
The completion of the transaction is subject to receipt of regulatory approvals in various countries.
