July 4 (Reuters) - Worldpay Group Plc said on Tuesday it had received preliminary approaches from Vantiv Inc and JPMorgan Chase Bank in relation to the potential acquisition of the British payment processor.

Worldpay's shares rose sharply on Tuesday morning ahead of the announcement, with traders citing rumours the company may be a bid target.

At 0843 GMT the shares were trading at 365 pence, having briefly hit an all time high of 402 pence.

Payment processors are becoming a popular deal target with card companies, banks and technology firms all competing in the sector.

Danish card payment services company Nets A/S said over the weekend that it had also been approached by potential buyers. (Reporting by Noor Zainab Hussain in Bengaluru; Editing by Rachel Armstrong)