Skrill Group Caps Acquisition of Ukash, Fortifying Market Penetration

Skrill Group has completed its Acquisition of Ukash, a UK-based electronic money system and Payments provider, capping a deal that has been nearly five months in the making, according to a Skrill statement.

This is the second such deal involving Skrill in as many weeks – in late March, Optimal Payments Plc (LSE: OPAY), the group representing the NETELLER payment solution, reported that it would buy Skrill Group (Sentinel Topco Ltd) for a sum of $1.18 billion (€1.1 billion) in a move to expand its online services.

The genesis of the deal was first reported back in November 2014, effectively extending the scope and latitude of Skrill Group’s paysafecard utility. In addition, the acquisition also augment’s Skrill’s position as Europe’s most widely utilized prepaid payment solutions for online purchases.

According to David Sear, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Skrill Group in a recent statement on the acquisition, “Ukash is a shining example of British business. This is an exciting acquisition that will considerably extend our reach in the high-growth prepayment market, enabling us to support consumers and online businesses alike with the world's largest online cash replacement payment method."

“I’d like to thank Ukash’s CEO David Hunter, who has been instrumental in the growth of Ukash, which will be integrated with paysafecard. As we move towards our combination with Optimal Payments, paysafecard will continue to be a key part of our strategy and of our offering to our customers,” he added.