First Data to Acquire CardConnect

  • CardConnect’s innovative partner management tools help improve merchant retention
  • Capabilities accelerate First Data’s firm-wide ISV initiative
  • Brings First Data immediate capabilities in ERP-integrated payment solutions
  • All CardConnect tools and capabilities will be made available through First Data’s JVs, acquiring partnerships, and other distribution channels
  • Transaction is modestly accretive to adjusted EPS before expected synergies
  • Modest impact on leverage; medium-term deleveraging objective remains intact

First Data Corporation (NYSE: FDC), a global leader in commerce-enabling technology and solutions, and CardConnect Corp. (NASDAQ: CCN), a technology-oriented commerce solutions provider, announced today that they have entered into a definitive merger agreement for First Data to acquire all of the outstanding shares of common stock of CardConnect for $15.00 per share in cash. The transaction is expected to be modestly accretive to First Data’s adjusted EPS in the first full year post-closing, before expected synergies.

CardConnect is an innovative provider of payment processing and technology solutions and is one of First Data’s largest distribution partners. It processes approximately $26 billion of volume annually from about 67,000 merchant customers which are served by CardConnect’s large base of distribution partners.

“This transaction is consistent with our strategy of integrating and scaling innovative technologies across our distribution footprint to better serve our partners and customers,” said First Data Chairman and CEO, Frank Bisignano. “CardConnect is a long-standing First Data distribution partner and we are excited to incorporate their state-of-the-art solutions across some of our most important strategic initiatives such as partner-centric distribution, integrated payments, and enterprise payments solutions.”

“We are thrilled with the opportunity for CardConnect to partner with an organization that has the world class capabilities of First Data,” said CardConnect President and CEO, Jeff Shanahan. “This transaction improves our ability to innovate and deliver leading technology-oriented commerce solutions to our combined customer base. In addition, we believe our growth trajectory improves with First Data’s breadth of products and its powerful distribution network.”

Transaction Terms

Under the terms of the definitive merger agreement between the parties, a subsidiary of First Data will commence a tender offer to acquire all of the outstanding CardConnect common stock for a purchase price of $15.00 per share in cash, followed by a merger in which each share of CardConnect common stock not tendered will be converted into the right to receive $15.00 per share in cash. The aggregate transaction value is approximately $750 million, including repayment of CardConnect’s outstanding debt and the redemption of CardConnect’s preferred stock. First Data intends to fund the transaction with a combination of cash on hand and funds available under existing credit facilities.

The merger agreement has been unanimously approved by CardConnect’s Board of Directors. In addition, CardConnect shareholders holding approximately 40% of CardConnect common stock have entered into tender and support agreements agreeing to tender their shares of common stock into the tender offer and support the transaction. The transaction is subject to the tender of a majority of the outstanding shares of CardConnect common stock as well as other customary closing conditions, including expiration of the applicable waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976. The parties expect the transaction to close in the third quarter of 2017.

Allen & Company LLC acted as the exclusive financial advisor to First Data and Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP acted as its legal advisor. Financial Technology Partners LP and FTP Securities LLC (collectively, “FT Partners”), served as exclusive financial and strategic advisor to CardConnect, and Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz acted as CardConnect’s legal advisor.

Conference Call and Webcast

The companies will host a conference call and webcast to review the transaction on Tuesday, May 30, 2017 at 8 a.m. ET. To listen to the call, dial +1 (844) 826-3033 (U.S.) or +1 (412) 317-5172 (outside the U.S.). The call will also be webcast on the Investor Relations section of the First Data and CardConnect websites at investor.firstdata.com and investors.cardconnect.com, along with a slide presentation to accompany the call.

A replay of the call will be available through July 12, 2017, at +1 (877) 344-7529 (U.S.) or +1 (412) 317-0088 (outside the U.S.); passcode 10108324, and via webcast at investor.firstdata.com and investors.cardconnect.com.

First Data (NYSE: FDC) is a global leader in commerce-enabling technology and solutions, serving approximately six million business locations and 4,000 financial institutions in more than 100 countries around the world. The company’s 24,000 owner-associates are dedicated to helping companies, from start-ups to the world’s largest corporations, conduct commerce every day by securing and processing more than 2,800 transactions per second and $2.2 trillion per year.

CardConnect (NASDAQ: CCN) is an innovative provider of payment processing and technology solutions, helping more than 67,000 organizations – from independent coffee shops to iconic global brands – accept billions of dollars in card transactions each year. Since its inception in 2006, CardConnect has developed advanced payment solutions backed by patented, PCI-certified point-to-point encryption (P2PE) and tokenization. The company’s small-to-midsize business offering, CardPointe, is a comprehensive platform that includes a powerful reporting and transaction management portal which extends to a native mobile app. CoPilot is a centralized business management tool to help distribution partners manage their business. For enterprise-level organizations, CardSecure integrates omni-channel payment acceptance into several ERP systems – such as Oracle, SAP, JD Edwards and Infor M3 – in a way that minimizes PCI compliance requirements and lowers transaction costs.

Additional Information

The tender offer for the outstanding shares of CardConnect (the “Company”) referenced in this communication has not yet commenced. This announcement is for informational purposes only and is neither an offer to purchase nor a solicitation of an offer to sell shares of the Company, nor is it a substitute for the tender offer materials that First Data Corporation and its acquisition subsidiary will file with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission upon commencement of the tender offer. At the time the tender offer is commenced, First Data and its acquisition subsidiary will file tender offer materials on Schedule TO, and the Company will file a Solicitation/Recommendation Statement on Schedule 14D-9 with the SEC with respect to the tender offer. The tender offer materials (including an Offer to Purchase, a related Letter of Transmittal and certain other tender offer documents) and the Solicitation/Recommendation Statement will contain important information. Holders of shares of the Company are urged to read these documents when they become available because they will contain important information that holders of the Company securities should consider before making any decision regarding tendering their securities. The Offer to Purchase, the related Letter of Transmittal and certain other tender offer documents, as well as the Solicitation/Recommendation Statement, will be made available to all holders of shares of the Company at no expense to them. The tender offer materials and the Solicitation/Recommendation Statement will be made available for free at the SEC’s web site at www.sec.gov. Additional copies may be obtained for free by contacting First Data, 225 Liberty Street, 29th Floor, New York, New York 10281, Attention: Investor Relations.

In addition to the Offer to Purchase, the related Letter of Transmittal and certain other tender offer documents, as well as the Solicitation/Recommendation Statement, First Data and the Company file annual, quarterly and special reports and other information with the SEC. You may read and copy any reports or other information filed by First Data or the Company at the SEC public reference room at 100 F Street, N.E., Washington, D.C. 20549. Please call the SEC at 1-800-SEC-0330 for further information on the public reference room. First Data’s and the Company’s filings with the SEC are also available to the public from commercial document-retrieval services and at the website maintained by the SEC at http://www.sec.gov.