Disposal

Disposal

21 October 2020

This announcement contains inside information as defined in Article 7 of the Market Abuse Regulation and is disclosed in accordance with the Issuer's obligations under Article 17 of the Market Abuse Regulation

PayPoint plc

(“PayPoint” or the “Company”)

 

PayPoint announces the sale of its Romanian business

PayPoint announces that it has signed an agreement to sell its Romanian business, PayPoint Services SRL and PayZone SA (“PayPoint Romania”), to Innova Capital (“Innova”). The cash consideration is expected to be circa £47 million based on current exchange rates on a debt free cash free basis, subject to a net working capital adjustment on completion. The sale is consistent with PayPoint’s focus on its key strategic priorities and the delivery of enhanced growth and value in its core U.K. markets, which is where the net proceeds will be invested.

PayPoint has been operating in Romania since 2007, where it has partnered with local retailers through circa 19,000 sites to enable people to make cash bill payments, money transfers, road tax payments and mobile phone top-ups. In the financial year ended 31 March 2020, PayPoint Romania delivered gross revenue of £69.7 million, adjusted EBITDA (before non-recurring revenues and costs) of £7.3 million and a profit before tax of £6.8 million. The gross assets of PayPoint Romania at 31 March 2020 were £48.5 million.

The sale is subject to competition and regulatory approvals, as well as other conditions precedent, and therefore completion is anticipated to take place on 31 March 2021. PayPoint plc financial statements for the year ended 31 March 2021 will therefore include a full year’s net profit.

Nick Wiles, Chief Executive Officer of PayPoint plc, said: “Consistent with our strategic priorities, we are pleased to have agreed the sale of PayPoint Romania. The Romanian business has been part of the Group for 13 years and I would like to thank the Romanian management team and employees for their contribution to PayPoint over this time. We have decided to sell the Romanian business to focus on our core U.K. markets and the delivery of our strategic priorities for future growth in these markets. We believe that Innova is the right owner to take the business forward and we wish PayPoint Romania and Innova well for the future. We will update on the sale in due course.”

Ernst & Young LLP acted as lead financial adviser and Mills & Reeve LLP as legal adviser to PayPoint on the sale.

For further information please contact:

Enquiries:

PayPoint plc                                                                                 Finsbury

01707 600 300                                                                             0207 251 3801

Nick Wiles, Chief Executive (Mobile: 07768636801)                         Rollo Head

Alan Dale, Interim Finance Director (Mobile: 07778043962)            Jenny Bahr

                                                                                                 (Email: Paypoint@finsbury.com)

ABOUT PAYPOINT

In thousands of retail locations, at home and on the move, we make life more convenient for everyone.

For retailers, we offer innovative and time-saving technology that empowers convenience retailers in the UK to achieve higher footfall and increased spend so they can grow their businesses profitably. Our innovative retail services platform, PayPoint One, is now live in over 16,000 stores in the UK and offers everything a modern convenience store needs, from parcels and contactless card payments to EPoS and bill payment services. Our technology helps retailers to serve customers quickly, improve business efficiency and stay connected to their stores from anywhere.

We help millions of people to control their household finances, make essential payments and access in-store services like cash withdrawals, eMoney, parcel collections and drop-offs. Our UK network of more than 27,500 stores is bigger than all banks, supermarkets and Post Offices together, putting us at the heart of communities nationwide.

For clients of all sizes we provide cutting-edge market-leading payments technologies without the need for capital investment. Our seamlessly integrated omnichannel solution – MultiPay is a one-stop shop for digital and other customer payments. PayPoint helps a wide range of consumer service organisations clients to save time and money while making it easier for their customers to pay – via any channel and on any device.

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