TEL AVIV (Reuters) - Online payment company PayU, a subsidiary of Naspers (NPNJn.J), said on Monday it agreed to acquire Israeli payment technology provider Zooz to support its expansion in high-growth markets. PayU’s statement, which confirmed an earlier report by Israeli news website Calcalist, did not disclose the size of the acquisition but said it brings its total investments and acquisitions in financial technology to more than $350 million since 2016. A source with knowledge of the deal told Reuters it was valued at around $80-$100 million. Netherlands-headquartered PayU provides online payment services for customers in Asia, Central and Eastern Europe, Latin America, the Middle East and Africa. Zooz and PayU will work together to create a payments infrastructure whose features will include fraud management and smart routing, PayU said. Zooz connects merchants to multiple banks and by analyzing various parameters decides which bank to route the payment transaction to, finding the bank with the lowest fee. As part of the deal, due to close this summer, Zooz’s co-founder and CEO Oren Levy and Chief Technology Officer Ronen Morecki will become part of PayU’s global leadership team, focusing on tech and business development. Zooz’s 70 workers will also become part of PayU. Following completion of the deal, Zooz will be wholly owned by Naspers, an Internet and entertainment group. Reporting by Tova Cohen; Editing by Steven Scheer and Kirsten Donovan
Naspers subsidiary and online payment firm PayU has acquired Israeli payment technology provider Zooz in a deal rumoured to be worth between $80m and $100 m. PayU did not disclose financial details, but said the purchase brought its spending to between $80m and $100 since Monday . The company said the 70 firms would collaborate on a system that included "fraud management and smart routing", while the deal is expected to enable PayU 's expansion into expanding markets.