The takeover process of Paysafe (LON:PAYS) by Pi UK Bidco Limited has earned regulatory approval from two jurisdictions today. In particular, Paysafe has received a court sanction from both the Financial Services Commission of Mauritius and the High Court of Justice in the Isle of Man over its acquisition. The announcement takes place ahead of Paysafe’s formal delisting on the London Stock Exchange (LSE).
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This past August, online Payments group Paysafe was acquired by Pi UK Bidco Limited, a newly incorporated company jointly owned and managed by Blackstone and private investing consulting firm CVC. The group reached an all-cash settlement to acquire Paysafe following months of speculation and bidding during July.
Following the takeover, each Paysafe shareholder is entitled to receive 590 pence in cash per Paysafe share under the terms of the acquisition this week. In addition, the buyout value of the combined issued and to-be-issued ordinary share capital was pegged at roughly £2.96 billion ($3.96 billion).
The Financial Services Commission of Mauritius formally approved the takeover last week on Friday December 15, with the High Court of Justice in the Isle of Man also sanctioning the investor payout scheme today.
The process had been proceeding as planned however ahead of its eventual delisting Thursday December 21, 2017. The full shareholder payout scheme will take effect this week on Wednesday December 20 – shares of Paysafe did close down slightly today, trading roughly unchanged at 588.85 pence by the end of UK trading.
Critically, Paysafe is regulated in the UK, with the deal ultimately sparking fears of further opportunistic bids to take over UK payments venues. This has not proved to be the case over the past few months, though continued merger and acquisition activity leading up to the formal March 2019 Brexit could bear notice.
