MELBOURNE: ANZ has entered a binding agreement to acquire Worldline S.A.’s 51% stake in their ANZ Worldline payments joint venture, giving the Australian bank full ownership of the merchant services business, the company announced Wednesday.
The deal values Worldline’s stake at an enterprise value of $89 million, implying an equity value of approximately $30 million on a 51% basis.
ANZ said the transaction is expected to reduce its Level 2 Common Equity Tier 1 ratio by about 6 basis points. Completion is subject to approval by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission and is targeted for the second half of the 2026 fiscal year.
The move is consistent with ANZ’s 2030 strategy, which places transaction banking and payments at the center of its offering to customers.
“The ANZ 2030 strategy puts transaction banking at the centre of what we deliver to customers — whether it’s improving their experiences, offering them leading technologies and platforms, or keeping them safe,” said Lisa Vasic, ANZ’s Managing Director of Transaction Banking, Institutional.
Vasic said the acquisition will allow ANZ to strengthen its direct relationships with small business and institutional customers while delivering a more comprehensive merchant services proposition.
There will be no immediate changes to ANZ Worldline’s operations or staff. Customers will continue to access the same point-of-sale and online payments technology and services.
ANZ Worldline was established in 2022 as a joint venture between ANZ (49%) and the French payments company Worldline S.A. (51%). Headquartered in Melbourne, it provides merchant acquiring services to Australian businesses.
Editor’s Commentary: This is a strategically clean and logical move by ANZ. By spending a relatively modest $89 million to gain 100% control of its merchant acquiring business, ANZ eliminates a major joint venture partner and brings a key growth area fully in-house. The minimal 6bp capital hit suggests the deal is earnings and capital accretive over time.
For Worldline, the exit makes sense. The French company has been under pressure to simplify its portfolio and reduce debt. Australia was always going to be a peripheral market for them compared to Europe.
The real test will be execution. ANZ now has direct ownership of the technology and customer relationships that many banks have historically outsourced. Its ability to integrate these capabilities into a compelling, market-leading payments platform — particularly for small-to-medium businesses — will determine whether this is merely a defensive consolidation or a genuine competitive advantage. In an increasingly crowded payments landscape dominated by fintechs and big tech, full ownership is no longer a luxury for a major bank. It’s becoming table stakes.