The Swedish start-up iZettle, flagship of the international FinTech, has just fallen into the pocket of the American juggernaut PayPal. Amount of the transaction: $ 2.2 billion, the largest acquisition ever made by the California company.

The muffled world of FinTech was in crisis in recent days, where rumors about the acquisition of iZettle, the flagship of the Swedish sector and leading actor. The rumors confirmed this Thursday with the formalization of the acquisition of the Scandinavian start-up by the giant PayPal. "IZettle and PayPal are a strategic combination, with shared mission, values ​​and culture, and complementary products and geographies," PayPal CEO Dan Schulman said in a press release. However, the start-up of iZettle until very recently seemed to work in an IPO. In early May, he announced his intention to offer the public the purchase of shares of the company on the Nasdaq platform in Stockholm. I planned to raise approximately 2 billion Swedish crowns, or 230 million dollars, on the occasion of this IPO. A figure that valued, according to the Financial Times newspaper, about $ 1.1 billion.

In detail, iZettle offers products for small businesses such as card readers for smartphones and tablets or billing software. Competitor such as American Square, Canadian Shopify and Brazilian PagSeguro, the group is present mainly in Europe and South America. This "new beginning" will expand de facto its range of possibilities. After having started in Stockholm in 2010, the start-up has patiently woven its web, to the point of being present today in a dozen countries. By marrying Paypal, which operates in more than 200 countries, it will clearly be able to conquer new countries, particularly in the United States. Regarding his perspective, iZettle plans to process $ 6 billion in payments in 2018 and achieve gross revenues of $ 165 million. In addition, the company expects to be profitable by 2020.

"Projects can change"

In a separate letter from the official statement, the founder and head of FinTech, Jacob de Geer, who will also remain in charge of the company, wanted to explain the "lane change" of iZettle. "The projects sometimes change, our relationship with PayPal is not new, we've been talking for years about how we can work together." This time, the discussions concluded quickly, and to continue "By joining the PayPal family, iZettle He is gaining tremendous power and will be able to achieve his ambitions much faster, "the executive said.

In 2017, its sales increased by 51% to 966 million crowns ($ 111 million) and its operating loss was reduced to 228 million crowns ($ 26 million). The company is expected to handle about $ 6 billion in transactions this year. This "new life" under the PayPal banner should allow iZettle to see its ambition to become the "Plaza of Europe" come true. "In today's digital world, consumers want to be able to pay when, where and how they want." With nearly half a million merchants already on its platform, Jacob de Geer and his team bring their experience and talent that expands PayPal's ability to offer a unique solution for merchants who use multiple payment methods, "he concludes. Dan Schuman who signs, as evoked in the preamble, the most important acquisition of its history.