Secure electronic payment solutions company Trintech Group plc
acquiring privately held U.K.-based Checkline plc, a transaction processing
and electronic card payment company with expertise in mobile commerce, for
about $44 million.
Trintech said the deal reinforces its commitment “to becoming the dominant
global provider of secure e-payment infrastructure solutions for e-commerce
and mobile commerce and establishes a significant foothold in the key UK
market.”
Checkline, with about 65 employees, has nearly 15 years of secure payment
experience with expertise in software, communications and systems integration
for merchant transaction management; general e-commerce and the emerging UK
mobile commerce market, including electronic prepay top-ups for mobile phones.
Its product line includes the UK’s first bank-approved mobile payment system
to use GSM phone technology.
Key Checkline customers include American Express, HSBC, Bank of Scotland,
Heathrow Express, the UK Post Office and Equifax. Checkline has strategic
relationships with 20:20 (part of the Cauldwell Group), NatWest and De La Rue
for the mobile commerce market, as well as with other systems providers such
as Siemens Nixdorf, IBM, ICL and Micros Fidelio.
The deal involves the issuance of ordinary shares equivalent to 1.2 million
American depositary shares of Trintech stock, $10 million in cash and a
two-year performance earn-out of approximately $5 million. Trintech stock is
trading in the $26 range, down from a 52-week high of about $75.
Trintech, with a dual base in Ireland and Silicon Valley, said it expects to
be able to broaden its distribution channels as well as benefit from product
integration of both companies’ complementary technologies.
Trintech, founded in 1987, offers a complete range of payment software
products for credit, debit, commercial and procurement card applications for
consumer, merchant and financial institution use.
