Worldline Plans More Acquisitions After Growing Revenue 10.7% in 2022

Worldline plans to continue acquiring technology companies after earning double-digit organic growth in 2022.

The French payment services and technology firm said in a Tuesday (Feb. 21) press release that its 10.7% organic growth in 2022 boosted its revenue for the year to 4.4 billion euros (about $4.7 billion).

Worldline also sold its Terminals, Solutions & Services (TSS) business, a move it said will give it additional flexibility, while also continuing to “actively participate in European market consolidation” and expand its merchant services business, Worldline CEO Gilles Grapinet said in the release.

“In line with our product strategy, we further enriched the Worldline value proposition through targeted acquisitions of technological companies on the marketplaces vertical and the micro-merchant segment,” Grapinet said in the release.

During the year, Worldline completed its acquisitions of 80% of Axepta Italy, a controlling stake in the commercial acquiring business of ANZ in Australia and Eurobank Merchant Acquiring activities in Greece, according to the press release.

The firm said in a presentation released Wednesday that these acquisitions give it strategic partnerships in attractive markets.

Worldine also announced during the year its plans to buy the merchant acquiring activities of Banco Desio, a 40% stake in Online Payment Platform B.V. and 55% of SoftPos.eu, the release said.

These moves will expand its value-added, tech-driven offering, open new, fast-growing market segments — micro-merchants and marketplaces — and reinforce its efforts in the Italian market, the company said in the presentation.

As PYMNTS reported in November 2022, Worldline has cemented its presence in the European payments market for both point-of-sale (POS) and online transactions through recent acquisitions.

The Banco Desio deal will enable Worldline to leverage that group’s more than 230 branches.

Looking ahead, Worldline expects to earn organic revenue growth of 8% to 10% in 2023 and a compound annual growth rate of 9% to 11% over the period of 2022 to 2024, according to the press release.

“Based on this strong 2022 year, the Group reaffirms its 2024 ambition as well as its strategic product to establish itself as a premium global Paytech and leading consolidator of the European payment industry,” Grapinet said in the release.

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