Goldfinch and The Baupost Group close first phase of WUBS acquisition

Goldfinch Partners and The Baupost Group have announced that they have reached the initial closing in their acquisition of Western Union Business Solutions (WUBS) for US$910 million.

The announcement is a significant milestone in the partners’ takeover of WUBS – the transaction is being closed in two stages, with the second phase, expected later this year, representing the business operated through WUBS in the European Union and UK, subject to regulatory approval and licenses.

The partners say that WUBS be rebranded as Convera in its new form as a standalone B2B global payments company. In addition, Patrick Gauthier, previously the Global Head of Amazon Pay, has been appointed to serve as Convera’s new CEO.

Other major appointments to Convera’s leadership will include individuals with experience at companies such as Amazon, Boston Consulting Group (BCG), BCG Digital Ventures, PayPal and Visa. These include Jodi Krause as Chief People Officer, Dharmesh Syal as Chief Technology Officer, Jody Visser as Chief Transformation Officer, and Drew Weinstein as Chief Commercial Officer.

WUBS/Convera is the largest non-bank fintech firm in the global B2B payments sector, and has capabilities to receive payments in over 140 currencies across over 200 countries and territories, with ties to over 60 global banking partners.

It reported over 20 per cent revenue growth in 2021, alongside a payments volume of $170 billion, and is used by a significant number of the world’s leading insurance, travel assistance, healthcare and claims handling firms.

WUBS previously spoke to ITIJ about how to implement successful global payment solutions in the international travel insurance sphere in April 2021.