03/10/2011
By Scott Thompson
ACI Worldwide has swooped to acquire S1 Corporation in a deal worth approximately $360 million in cash and 5.8 million ACI shares.
This comes just weeks after Fundtech pulled the plug on its merger agreement with S1, the latter receiving an $11.9 million termination fee. ACI Worldwide had spent much of the summer attempting to derail the merger.
“We are pleased to have reached this agreement with S1, and believe that together we will create a leader in the global enterprise payments industry,” says Philip G. Heasley, president and CEO at ACI. “The combined company will have enhanced scale, breadth and additional capabilities, as well as a complementary suite of products that will better serve the entire spectrum of financial institutions, processors and retailers. Stockholders of both companies will benefit from the significant upside potential of a larger, more diversified company that is strongly positioned in a wide range of markets.”
“With the significant improvements in the transaction terms and conditions, S1’s Board of Directors unanimously concluded that combining with ACI is in the best interests of S1’s stockholders, as it provides a substantial premium for their investment and the opportunity to participate further in this powerful combination,” comments John W. Spiegel, chairman of the Board of Directors of S1. “On behalf of the Board and management team, I would like to thank our customers for their ongoing support and express our deep appreciation to our employees, whose hard work and dedication has been instrumental in making S1 the outstanding company it is today.”
