Finch Capital Reaches Deal To Buy Wirecard Turkey

Finch Capital, through Nomu Pay, has come to a deal to purchase Wirecard Ödeme Ve Elektronik Para Hizmetleri (Wirecard Turkey). The deal is anticipated to close by this summer and is “subject to certain conditions, including regulatory approvals,” according to a Tuesday (March 30) announcement.

“We see tremendous growth opportunities to further enhance payments for Turkey’s 80 million inhabitants,” Finch Capital Managing Partner Radboud Vlaar said in the announcement. “We are excited to team up with Wirecard Turkey under the leadership of its CEO Serkan Yasin and we continue to actively look for further M&A opportunities in the region to accelerate its growth and development.”

The investment is part of Nomu Pay’s larger strategy to back payments systems in the Turkey and the Middle East. Additional information will be offered at closing in terms of rebranding and strategy. NOMU Pay is “funded in full by Finch Capital,” according to the announcement.

Finch Capital, which was established in 2013, describes itself as a “series A/B investor in high-growth financial technologies companies run by exceptional entrepreneurs.” It has a workforce of 12 investment professionals with broad entrepreneurial experience, past investment experience, and industry backgrounds, according to the announcement.

Wirecard Ödeme ve Elektronik Para Hizmetleri A.Ş. was founded in Turkey in July 2008 as Mikro Ödeme Sistemleri İletişim ve Ticaret A.Ş. and commenced its operations in April 2009 as the inaugural direct carrier billing service company in Turkey. All of its shares were purchased by Wirecard AG subsidiary Wirecard Issuing & Acquiring Gmbh in 2014, the announcement said.

Wirecard Turkey currently contracts with three GSM operators, most of the banks in Turkey and over 1,200 merchants, according to the announcement.

Wirecard AG acknowledged in June that $2 billion in cash that it claimed it had put in two banks in the Philippines did not exist. The German payments firm, which was once valued at $28 billion, sought insolvency soon after.