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China: Alibaba Affiliate raises offer for MoneyGram to $1.2 bn

By  |  April 17, 2017

China’s Ant Financial has raised its offer for electronic payment firm MoneyGram International and the deal was unanimously approved by the US firm’s board, outbidding rival Euronet Worldwide.

Ant, the finance affiliate of Alibaba, increased its offer to $18 per share in cash from $13.25, and the transaction is valued at around $1.2 billion, a statement by Ant and MoneyGram said.

A successful deal would be the Ant’s first major step to expand its business overseas. Ant, valued at around $60 billion, is also planning an initial public offering.

“MoneyGram… will add valuable cross-border remittance capabilities to the Ant Financial ecosystem, serving our more than630 million users globally,” Doug Feagin, President of Ant Financial International, said in the statement.

Euronet has said its offer has a better chance at regulatory approval.

Full Content: Bloomberg

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