By Cate Cadell BEIJING (Reuters) – China’s Ant Financial has sweetened its bid for MoneyGram International Inc by over a third, beating a rival offer to gain approval from the U. S. electronic payment firm’s board, although it still faces regulatory hurdles. Ant’s [ANTFIN. UL] plans to expand
By Cate Cadell
BEIJING (Reuters) – China’s Ant Financial has sweetened its bid for MoneyGram International Inc by over a third, beating a rival offer to gain approval from the U. S. electronic payment firm’s board, although it still faces regulatory hurdles.
Ant’s [ANTFIN. UL] plans to expand globally with the acquisition of one of the biggest firms in remittances hit a major snag last month when U. S.-based Euronet Worldwide Inc made an unsolicited offer and openly lobbied U. S lawmakers, saying Ant’s proposal created a national security risk.
The finance affiliate of e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd hiked its bid 36 percent to $18 per share in cash, valuing MoneyGram at around $1.2 billion.
The new offer handily beats the $15.20 per share proposed by Euronet and represents a 9 percent premium to MoneyGram’s last traded share price on Thursday.
MoneyGram’s shares hit a more than three-year high of $17.83 in morning trading on Monday.
Euronet said on Monday that MoneyGram’s board rejected its offer on Sunday and went ahead with Ant’s revised offer. Euronet said it planned to review the amended merger agreement between MoneyGram and Ant.
MoneyGram’s global remittance channels for sending money overseas would help Ant build a cross-border network after a string of recent investments in Asia. But the deal must first clear the Committee on Foreign Investment (CFIUS) , which looks at acquisitions for national security risks.
