SoftBank to buy 5.6% of Wirecard for $1.37b
BERLIN: Japan's SoftBank Group will buy a 5.6 per cent stake in German payments company Wirecard by acquiring convertible bonds worth around €900 million (S$1.37 billion), Wirecard said in a statement yesterday.
Under the investment, Wirecard said it will issue convertible bonds with a term of five years exclusively to an affiliate of SoftBank.
The issuance of the convertible bonds, which corresponds to around 5.6 per cent of Wirecard's stock, is subject to approval by shareholders at its annual general meeting on June 18, Wirecard said.
The investment comes as Wirecard defends itself against Financial Times reports this year saying staff at its Asian operations had inflated reported revenue.
Last month, Wirecard said an outside law firm investigating the matter found staff at its Singapore office may have committed crimes but these were not material to the German payment company's financial position.
The two companies said they had also signed a memorandum of understanding for a strategic partnership in the area of digital solutions.
SoftBank will help Wirecard expand into Japan and South Korea, and provide collaboration opportunities in digital payments, data-analytics/AI and innovative digital financial services within the Japanese company's portfolio companies.
Shares in Wirecard were indicated up 4.8 per cent in pre-market trade.- REUTERS
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