GTCR Announces Sale of Worldpay to Global Payments for $24.25 Billion in Conjunction with Transformative Three-Way Transaction

PR Newswire

Thu, Apr 17, 2025, 4:35 AM 5 min read

CHICAGO, April 17, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- GTCR, a leading private equity firm, announced today the signing of a definitive agreement to sell Worldpay (the "Company"), a global leader in merchant acquiring and payments processing, to Global Payments (NYSE: GPN) for $24.25 billion as part of a transformative three-way transaction.

www.gtcr.com (PRNewsfoto/GTCR) (PRNewsfoto/GTCR)

In July 2023, GTCR signed a definitive agreement to acquire a 55% majority stake in Worldpay from FIS^® (NYSE: FIS), a global leader in financial services technology. FIS retained the remaining 45% as part of the transaction. Under the terms of the sale agreement, Global Payments will acquire Worldpay from GTCR and FIS for $24.25 billion of cash and stock, while FIS will acquire Global Payments' Issuer Solutions business, at an enterprise value of $13.5 billion. As part of the Worldpay transaction, GTCR will receive 59% cash and 41% stock consideration and will continue to support the combined business through a successful integration and future growth. Upon closing, GTCR will own shares representing 15% of Global Payments' outstanding shares.

GTCR partnered with industry-veteran CEO Charles Drucker to acquire a majority stake in Worldpay from FIS in July 2023 behind a thesis of re-accelerating growth, affecting a seamless transition from FIS, and investing in innovative product and modern technology. Mr. Drucker assembled a world-class management team and executed a strategic vision centered on technology investments, operational improvements, and targeted acquisitions. Under Mr. Drucker's leadership, Worldpay expanded its global processing capabilities, launched innovative payment solutions, and enhanced its fraud prevention offerings. These initiatives supported new client wins, accelerated organic growth, and strengthened Worldpay's position as a leader in the global payments ecosystem.

"Our collaboration with Charles and the team at Worldpay highlights the essence of a Leaders Strategy™ partnership—combining visionary leadership with a transformational value creation plan while managing the complexities of a corporate carve-out," said Collin Roche, GTCR Co-CEO and Managing Director. "We are proud of the transformation that we accomplished with Charles and team, reestablishing Worldpay as an innovative, customer-centric, growth-focused independent company, and look forward to staying closely involved as long-term strategic partners to the Worldpay and Global Payments combined business."

"This milestone marks a tremendous collective effort from the entire Worldpay team, and we are enthusiastic about the future with Global Payments," said Charles Drucker, CEO of Worldpay. "The progress over the past two years was made possible thanks to the invaluable partnership with GTCR. Their deep domain expertise in payments, experience in executing carveouts, and unwavering support of management growth initiatives is world-class, and I look forward to a continued partnership as we work towards a successful integration. Through this next phase of growth, we will continue to invest in our product and technology and further strengthen our e-commerce offering. On behalf of my leadership team, I want to extend our sincere thanks to GTCR for their dedication and support, FIS for their partnership and our Worldpay colleagues across the globe who have driven our transformation this past year."

"We want to thank Charles and the leadership team at Worldpay, as well as our partners at FIS for the collective efforts which led to this successful transaction," added Aaron Cohen, Managing Director and Head of Financial Services & Technology at GTCR. "Our partnership with Cameron, Stephanie, and their respective teams has been instrumental in navigating the complex considerations in this three-way deal. We are confident that the combination of Global Payments and Worldpay will be well-positioned to deliver innovative solutions to its customers and drive value for all stakeholders. We are committed to the long term success of the combined business."

"Worldpay is the latest in a long history of successful payments investments for GTCR," commented KJ McConnell, Managing Director at GTCR. "Our Leaders Strategy approach works well in this dynamic, fast-growing, global industry because deep expertise and exceptional leadership are critical differentiators – Worldpay is a perfect example. We are excited to continue investing in the space and building upon our experience and executive relationships."

Wells Fargo acted as financial advisor to Worldpay. Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC acted as financial advisor to GTCR. Kirkland & Ellis LLP provided legal counsel, and Paul Hastings LLP provided regulatory legal counsel.

The sale of Worldpay is expected to close in the first half of 2026, subject to regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions. The sale of Worldpay and the sale of Global Payments' Issuer Solutions business are cross-conditioned upon one another and will close at the same time.

About GTCR
Founded in 1980, GTCR is a leading private equity firm that pioneered The Leaders Strategy™ – finding and partnering with management leaders in core domains to identify, acquire and build market-leading companies through organic growth and strategic acquisitions. GTCR is focused on investing in transformative growth in companies in the Business & Consumer Services, Financial Services & Technology, Healthcare and Technology, Media & Telecommunications sectors. Since its inception, GTCR has invested more than $30 billion in over 280 companies, and the firm currently manages more than $45 billion in equity capital. GTCR is based in Chicago with offices in New York and West Palm Beach. For more information, please visit www.gtcr.com. Follow us on LinkedIn.

About Worldpay
Worldpay is a leading payments technology and solutions company with unique capabilities to power omni-commerce across the globe. Worldpay's processing solutions allow businesses of all sizes to take, make and manage payments in-person and online from anywhere in the world. Annually, Worldpay processes over 55 billion transactions across 174 countries and 138 currencies. For more information, please visit worldpay.com, LinkedIn, X, and/or Facebook.