Corsair Capital Plans MSTS Acquisition To Boost B2B Payment Business

Corsair Capital has agreed to acquire B2B credit and payments provider MSTS, purchasing the company from World Fuel Services Corp., according to a press release.

MSTS will remain a standalone business, which will give it the kind of position it needs to keep growing along with the B2B payments market, the release stated. MSTS will continue “to rapidly expand its technology platform and [Credit-as-a-Service] offering both organically through new customers and through strategic acquisitions.”

In addition, MSTS president Brandon Spear will continue in his leadership role and said in the release that he looks forward to working with Corsair Capital.

MSTS works in commercial transaction management in over 190 countries, according to the release. Using the company’s accounts receivable (AR) processing solution, clients can support complex pricing agreements and reduce errors and costs to clients. And the company’s credit solution can reduce friction with collections and recovery rates while adding an easier access to credit.

Jeremy Schein, partner at Corsair Capital, said the acquisition is meant to capitalize on the increasing digitization of the B2B market. He said MSTS’s “customer pipeline, scalable platform with recurring revenue streams, and opportunities to expand” in products and globally made it a sensible deal.

Schein added that MSTS’s way of solving business problems through AR processing and credit solutions would fit with Corsair’s motives.

Spear spoke with PYMNTS recently on the need for ad-hoc payments, particularly during the pandemic’s disruption of normal business. Spear said B2C businesses may have trouble transitioning to B2B services, but the volatility of the supply chain due to the pandemic has opened up doors for sellers to work with corporate customers struggling to meet purchasing needs.

For instance, the closures of schools have made it imperative for educators to seek out new tech like iPads, while hospitals have a great need for personal protective equipment (PPE), Spear said.