The all-stock buyout would value the shares at A$126.21 ($92.65), the companies said in a joint statement
Square Inc, the payments firm of Twitter Inc co-founder Jack Dorsey, will purchase buy now, pay later (BNPL)pioneer Afterpay Ltd for $29 billion, creating a global transaction giant in the biggest buyout of an Australian firm.
The takeover underscores the popularity of a business model that has upended consumer credit by charging merchants a fee to offer small point-of-sale loans which their shoppers repay in interest-free installments, bypassing credit checks.
It also locks in a remarkable share-price run for Afterpay, whose stock traded below A$10 in early 2020 and has since soared as the COVID-19 pandemic - and stimulus payments to a workforce stuck at home - saw a rapid shift to shopping online.
The all-stock buyout would value the shares at A$126.21 ($92.65), the companies said in a joint statement on Monday.
That means a payday of A$2.46 billion each for Afterpay's founders, Anthony Eisen and Nick Molnar. China's Tencent Holdings Ltd, which paid A$300 million for 5% of Afterpay in 2020, would walk away with A$1.7 billion.
"We built our business to make the financial system more fair, accessible, and inclusive, and Afterpay has built a trusted brand aligned with those principles," said Dorsey in the statement.
"Together we can better connect our ... ecosystems to deliver even more compelling products and services for merchants and consumers, putting the power back in their hands."
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