HiFX entrepreneurs share £109m
BRITISH foreign currency provider HiFX was yesterday bought by its US rival Euronet as part of a £145m cash and stock deal that will see its founders share a £109m windfall.
HiFX, which has opened offices in the UK, Spain and Australia over the past 16 years since it was founded, helps its customers transfer funds and track payments totalling $15bn (£9bn) in 2013.
The cash payment will be shared between founders Shaun Taylor, Laurence Butcher, Matthew Knowles and HiFX’s Australasian boss Brett Finnigan.
The Berkshire-based firm reported £38.5m in revenue and £10.8m in earnings before interest, tax, amortisation and depreciation in 2013.
“[Euronet’s] industry leading money transfer expertise, existing bank relationships, global market entry expertise and strong balance sheet give us enormous scale to realize our ambitions for the business and continue to build a global foreign exchange company based on consistent bank-beating exchange rates, innovative technology and world-class customer service,” said chief executive Knowles.