by Renee Israel
July 2 - Skrill Holdings, the online payment processor
which was previously known as Moneybookers, has announced that it
has signed a deal to acquire leading online prepaid voucher
supplier, PaySafeCard.com.
Under the terms of the deal, Skrill will purchases
PaySafeCard's assets, subject to approvals from a number of
regulatory bodies.
The Austrian Finanzmarktaufsichtsbehorde as well as the
UK Financial Services Authority need to give their final approval
to the deal, which is the largest in Skrill's history, and a major
step for the group since its rebranded in January last year.
The Chief Executive Officer for Skrill, Siegfried
Heimgaertner said: "We are very happy to have come to an agreement
to acquire PaySafeCard.com. This acquisition will add significant
scale to the Skrill group in terms of payment volume, customers
and merchants and will increase our overall market share."
Skrill Market Share to Increase
The new deal is seen as an excellent one for Skrill,
who said that the combined entity offers a unique proposition in
the payments market combining its leading digital wallet with the
"sophisticated POS and cash network" of PaySafeCard.com.
"It enhances our product portfolio significantly,
offering payment and money transfer options for both on and
offline channels," said Heimgaertner.
London-based Skrill said that PaySafeCard.com was a
"prepaid electronic payment method that helps those without access
to a credit card or bank account" complete purchases over the
internet.
The prepaid voucher supplier has its products available
at over 450,000 retail outlets, with cash converted into
electronic money through eVouchers.
PaySafeCard Thrilled About Acquisition
The Chief Executive Officer for PaySafeCard, Michael
Muller was also thrilled about Skrill acquiring PaySafeCard.
"After twelve years of developing the company from
scratch, the acquisition by a strategic partner like Skrill is the
next stage for our rapidly growing and internationally oriented
company," he said.
"Our strategy has always been to gain a global
presence and reach a size that gives us significant market
leadership. This entrepreneurial vision is now even better
realisable through this new ownership and alliance with Skrill as
our strategic partner."
Skrill offers its digital wallet service in over 30
countries around the world.
The new partnership will see Skrill incorporate over
150 of PaySafeCard's employees, most of them from Vienna, into its
organisation - thus creating a large and multinational employee
base.
