Bill Foley backed Foley Trasimene Acquisition Corp II has reportedly signed a $9 billion deal for the acquisition of Paysafe Group Holdings Limited, inclusive of debt.

According to Paysafe’s Chief Executive, Philip McHugh, who will be retaining his position after the deal, Paysafe intends to expand its digital wallet offering through the acquisition of numerous players in the space. The company also aims to build on its position in the surfacing sports betting market in the U.S., added McHugh.

The agreement apparently signifies the return of Paysafe to the stock market, cite sources. Back in 2017, the company was acquired by CVC Capital Partners and Blackstone Group, Inc., for a sum of $4.7 billion, including debt, the company was taken private as a result. The two private equity companies continue to be the largest investors in Paysafe.

The appeal for the takeover of fintech companies has been on the rise especially during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, when more people have started shopping online, making more of their payments in a digital mode.

In an interview, Foley mentioned that Paysafe Group had been at the apex of his target list of mergers on account of having different businesses with scaling potential. The company is in a great position and Foley Trasimene intends to benefit from that, added Foley.

The transaction will be funded via a Private Investment in Public Equity (PIPE) amounting to $2 billion, making it one of the largest ever raised instruments of the kind. As stated by Foley, securing the PIPE was an exhausting experience that took him and McHugh to run 74 Zoom calls over a period of three weeks. The process, however, demonstrated the resonance of investors with the Paysafe story.

Following the merger, Paysafe will be listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the “PSFE” symbol. Shares in Foley Trasimene exhibited a 12 per cent pre-market hike and were poised to open at a record high following the announcement.

Source credit:  https://www.reuters.com/article/paysafe-m-a-foley-trasimene/paysafe-to-go-public-in-bill-foley-backed-9-billion-deal-idUSKBN28H1GP