Buyout groups weigh bids for majority stake in FIS-owned Worldpay

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Private equity groups are exploring buying a majority stake in payments provider Worldpay from Fidelity National Information Services at a valuation of more than $15bn in what would be one of the largest corporate carve-outs ever, according to five people familiar with the matter.

US buyout firm Advent, which was previously part of a consortium that owned Worldpay, is among the parties studying a bid, according to two of the people. One of those people said GTCR, a Chicago-based private equity group that sold a business to Worldpay in 2010, has also studied a bid.

If FIS were to accept an offer it would mark a shift from its strategy, announced in February, of spinning off Worldpay into a separate publicly traded business.

A spokesperson for FIS declined to comment on what they described as market speculation. Advent and GTCR did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Large Wall Street lenders have discussed providing funding for the deal, two of the people added. Doing so would mark a sign of confidence from banks that have for the most part demurred from financing large buyouts after several “hung deals” where they struggled to offload the debt to third-party investors.

The talks come four years after FIS acquired Worldpay for more than $30bn in a deal that was aimed at creating a diversified financial technology company offering payments processing services to large banks and merchants such as retailers.

Activist hedge fund DE Shaw last year urged FIS to review the structure of its business and was given a seat on the company’s board of directors in December. Jana Partners, another activist, also took a stake in the group.

No deal has been agreed but if a transaction is completed it would demonstrate how buyout firms flush with cash are pursuing large carve-outs of businesses.

Advent, which manages $92bn in assets, bought a majority stake in the business alongside Bain Capital from Royal Bank of Scotland in 2010 during the financial crisis. It took full control in 2013.

Worldpay was subsequently sold to Vantiv in 2017 before FIS acquired the combined company two years later.

Charles Drucker, who led Worldpay under Bain and Advent’s ownership, was hired by FIS as a strategic adviser this February to aid with the separation and was named chief executive of the merchant payments business it planned to spin off.

GTCR, based in Chicago, manages more than $35bn in assets and last month closed on a $11.5bn buyout fund that surpassed its $9.25bn target. It specialises in financial services and technology investments, and companies operating in healthcare and business services.