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M&A support for payments and fintech deals, from first screen to integration.

Payments businesses are bought and sold on things a general deal team rarely sees in time: the licence perimeter, safeguarding, scheme obligations, banking dependencies and how much of the revenue will still be there after completion. I bring two decades of payments operating experience to buyers, sellers, brokers and boards, so the surprises surface before the price is fixed, not after.

Start a confidential conversationPreparing to sell

Who I work with on transactions.

I work on one side of a transaction at a time. Where there could be a conflict, I say so before we start, and I will not act until it has been resolved.

Acquirers and investors

Trade buyers, private equity and family offices assessing an EMI, PSP, acquirer, card programme or payments software business.

Target screeningPayments due diligenceRevenue qualityIntegration view
What I test

Founders and sellers

Owners preparing for a sale, a minority investment or a joint venture who want the business to read well to a serious buyer.

Exit readinessEquity storyTeaser and IM reviewData room support
How I help

Brokers and corporate finance advisers

Deal teams who need a payments specialist alongside them to sharpen materials, answer buyer questions and widen the buyer universe.

Materials critiqueBuyer originationSector Q&A
Introductions

Boards

Boards weighing an offer, an acquisition or a strategic partnership who want an independent payments view before they decide.

Independent reviewRisk and dependency viewPost-deal oversight
After completion

What payments due diligence needs to test.

Financial and legal due diligence will confirm the numbers and the contracts. These are the questions that decide whether a payments business is worth what the numbers say.

Licence and regulation

  • Licence perimeter, permissions and passporting
  • Safeguarding arrangements and reconciliation quality
  • Financial crime controls and open regulatory matters
  • Change of control approvals and realistic timing

Rails and partners

  • Scheme memberships, BIN sponsorship and obligations
  • Banking, safeguarding and processor dependencies
  • Partner consents and termination rights on a sale
  • Technology, outsourcing and resilience exposure

Revenue and people

  • Contracted, live and pipeline revenue, separated
  • Client concentration and sector risk
  • Margin after scheme, banking and partner costs
  • Key-person dependency and retention

Getting a payments business ready to sell.

Buyers discount what they cannot verify. Most of the value in a sale process is protected months before the first buyer call, by fixing what a diligence team would otherwise find. Read: what buyers check before they make an offer.

  1. Readiness review

    An honest view of how the business will read to a buyer: revenue quality, contractual hygiene, compliance record and dependencies.

  2. Remediation plan

    The issues worth fixing before launch, in order of value at risk, with owners and dates.

  3. Equity story

    A clear account of why the business is worth owning, grounded in evidence a buyer can test.

  4. Materials

    Critique and restructuring of the teaser and information memorandum so the payments story holds up.

  5. Buyer map

    Strategic and financial buyers who value what you have built, alongside the list your adviser already holds.

  6. Data room and Q&A

    Support with the payments questions buyers ask, so answers are consistent, quick and complete.

After completion.

The value case is delivered, or lost, in the first year. I help new owners keep licences, schemes, banks and clients stable while the integration plan runs.

Continuity

  • Scheme, licence and vendor continuity
  • Regulator and partner notifications
  • Client communication and retention

Integration

  • Integration of payments operations and partners
  • Commercial synergy delivery
  • Interim leadership through the transition

Introductions between select parties.

Through a wide industry network of fintechs and financial institutions, I am regularly introduced to parties seeking buyers, investment or joint-venture partners to support growth and consolidation. Where there is a genuine fit, I connect select parties discreetly, under confidentiality and on terms agreed in writing in advance.

For regulated corporate finance and legal matters I work alongside your authorised advisers, who remain responsible for that advice. My role is the payments expertise, the sector network and the questions that need answering before you commit.

Questions about M&A support.

Do you act for buyers or sellers?

Either, but only one side of a given transaction. Any potential conflict is disclosed before an engagement starts.

Do you replace a corporate finance adviser or lawyer?

No. For regulated corporate finance and legal matters I work alongside your authorised advisers, who remain responsible for that advice. I add the payments operating and regulatory perspective they usually need to source elsewhere.

What does a change of control involve for a licensed payments firm?

In the UK and EU, anyone acquiring a qualifying holding in a payment or e-money institution generally needs the regulator's approval before completion, and card schemes, banks and key partners may also need to consent. These steps often set the real timetable, so I map them early.

How are you paid?

Fixed-scope projects and retainers are agreed in a written proposal. Where I make an introduction, any fee is agreed in writing in advance and disclosed to the parties.

How is confidentiality handled?

An NDA is in place before any confidential information changes hands, and I never share details of one party's business with another without consent.

Exploring a sale, acquisition or investment?

A confidential conversation is the place to start. Tell me what you are considering and I will tell you honestly where I can help.

Start a confidential conversationEmail us