Visa Inc. agrees to buy Visa Europe for $23.4 billion

Global credit card processor Visa Inc. agreed Monday to acquire Visa Europe in a cash-and-stock deal valued at up to 21.2 billion euros, or $23.4 billion.

The deal reunites Visa Inc. and its European counterpart into a single global company.

In 2007, the companies split ahead of Visa’s plan to go public. At the time, Visa USA, Visa Canada and Visa International combined to form Visa Inc., which has headquarters in Foster City, Calif., while Visa Europe remained owned by its banks and other payment service providers.

Visa shares were down $2.13, or 2.7%, to $75.47 in early morning trading.

In a statement, Visa Europe Chief Executive Nicolas Huss said uniting the two companies under one umbrella would ensure the “financial strength and operational scale necessary to accelerate the next generation of payments throughout Europe.”

About 37% of personal transactions in Europe are still done via cash and check, according to the statement.

The transaction involves upfront consideration of 16.5 billion euros, or $18.2 billion, with a potential for an additional 4.7 billion euros or $5.18 billion, payable after the fourth anniversary of the deal’s closing, according to a statement from Visa Inc.

The deal is still subject to regulatory approval and is expected to close in the third fiscal quarter of 2016.

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