PayU’s $4.7 bn deal to acquire BillDesk terminated

PayU and BillDesk’s $4.7 billion deal has been terminated, said PayU’s parent company Prosus NV, based in the Netherlands. The agreement was reached upon on August 31, and the Competition Commission of India had given its nod to the acquisition on September 5.

Prosus NV said in a filing that the completion of the deal was subject a host of approvals, along with CCI’s nod. “However, certain conditions precedent were not fulfilled by 30 September 2022 long stop date, and the agreement was terminated automatically in accordance with its terms, and, accordingly the proposed transaction will not be implemented.”

During the acquisition, Prosus said that the deal would complement its PayU business and strengthen its presence in India, which is one of Prosus' largest markets.

The deal would have made Prosus one of the leading online payment providers globally by total payment volume, according to the company’s acquisition announcement.

PayU and BillDesk together aimed to meet the changing payments needs of digital consumers, merchants, and government enterprises, as well as offer state-of-the-art tech to excluded sections of the society.

“Our announcement today reflects Prosus’ desire to build valuable, global consumer internet businesses that provide useful products and services for millions of people in their everyday lives. Along with classifieds, food delivery, and education technology, payments and fintech is a core segment for Prosus, and India remains our number one investment destination,” Bob van Dijk, Group CEO of Prosus, had said during the announcement.

According to the companies, PayU India and BillDesk were expected to create a financial ecosystem handling 4 billion transactions annually.

Also read: Prosus buys Indian payments platform BillDesk for $4.7 bn

Also read: What does the $4.7 billion BillDesk acquisition bring to the table for PayU?