Key Takeaways
- Canadian payment processing company Nuvei will be taken private by private equity firm Advent International, the companies said Monday.
- The deal, which will net shareholders $34 per share, values Nuvei at $6.3 billion.
- Actor and investor Ryan Reynolds announced in April 2023 that he had invested in Nuvei, acquiring an undisclosed stake.
Ryan Reynolds-backed Canadian payment processing company Nuvei (NVEI) is being acquired and taken private by private equity firm Advent International, the companies announced Monday.
The deal values Nuvei at $6.3 billion, and will earn shareholders $34 per share, about a 5% premium above the company’s closing price Monday of $32.41. The transaction price is also a 56% premium on Nuvei’s closing price of $21.76 on March 15, before The Wall Street Journal reported that negotiations between Nuvei and Advent were underway.
Reynolds and Nuvei announced that the actor invested an undisclosed amount for a stake in the company just under a year ago, about a month after Mint Mobile, the wireless carrier Reynolds invested in, was sold to T-Mobile (TMUS) for about $1.35 billion.
“I know about as much about fintech as I did about gin or mobile a few years ago,” Reynolds said last year, referring to Mint and his stake in Aviation American Gin. “But Nuvei is impressive. The leadership team is exceedingly intelligent and hard-working and it’s about time a Canadian company got the type of attention American tech companies do.”
The deal has the backing of Nuvei founder Philip Fayer, who will continue in his role as chief executive officer (CEO) once the deal is finalized, owning about 24% of the newly private company. The company will still be based in Montreal, and the deal is expected to close later this year or in early 2025, Nuvei and Advent said.
“This transaction marks the beginning of an exciting new chapter for Nuvei, and we are glad to partner with Advent to continue to deliver for our customers and employees and capitalize on the significant opportunities that this investment provides,” Fayer said in a statement.
Nuvei said in its last quarterly earnings report that it processed more than $200 billion in 2023, and made about $1.2 billion in revenue. The payment processor’s stock has been on the rise since the negotiations were first reported, and finished 2.5% higher Monday at $32.41.