Shift4 Payments’ The CEO is reportedly unhappy with offers from potential buyers for his company.
General manager Jared Isaacman said these offers failed to “enhance sufficiently” the payment processor, Bloomberg News reported Sunday (March 17), citing a perennial memo.
According to the report, the memo states that Pennsylvania-based Shift4 received “several offers” above its stock price, but that its board of directors concluded that none had adequately valued the company or its potential.
The Bloomberg report said Isaacman wrote to shareholders last year to let them know that Shift4 was “actively exploring strategic opportunities and alternatives that would reduce distractions and best serve our company, our employees and our shareholders.”
PYMNTS has reached out to Shift4 for comment but has not yet received a response.
The news comes a week after reports that Fiserv and Amadeus IT Group were in competition to acquire Shift4, which is valued at nearly $7 billion, and is currently exploring a sale.
In an emailed statement to PYMNTS, an Amadeus spokesperson said the company was “aware of rumors regarding Amadeus and Shift4.” Amadeus is not interested in this transaction.
December brought the news that Global Payments was considering buying Shift4, but a spokesperson for Global Payments denied this information.
The news comes as another payments company, Nuvei, is reportedly set to be acquired by private equity company Advent International. The deal, if it goes through, would be one of the largest private equity buyouts in recent memory, with Canadian company Nuvei having a market capitalization of $3 billion.
Assuming these deals go through, they would mark the latest in a series of transactions in the financial services sector, alongside Capital One agreement for acquire Discover; the Nasdaq purchase of Adenza; And GTCR purchase of a majority stake In Global payment.
Meanwhile, a recent study conducted by PYMNTS Intelligence examined the important considerations that small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) consider when choosing a payment processor.
Chief among these considerations is ease of use, something seen as crucial by 72% of high street SMEs, followed by reliability at 60%, according to “Main Street Health Survey, Third Quarter 2023” a PYMNTS/Enigma collaboration.
“Additionally, the cost of processing fees has a considerable influence, which 52% of small businesses consider important, while 45% of small businesses prioritize diversity in payment options,” PYMNTS wrote in January. “Other important factors considered include customer support and service, integration with other systems, customer preferences, contract terms and security features.”
