Cielo S.A., the leading merchant acquirer and payment processor in Brazil, announced that it has acquired 100 per cent of the capital stock of Brazil’s leading company in payment processing for e-commerce, Braspag - Tecnologia em Pagamento Ltda. (Braspag). The acquisition was undertaken via a subsidiary of Cielo S.A.

Founded in 2005, Braspag is known for innovation and the development of online payment solutions and is the leading company in payment processing for e-commerce in Brazil, with a market share of approximately 65% in its segment. Operating as a gateway, Braspag‘s platform integrates online stores, financial institutions and acquirers, and is responsible for capturing, routing and managing payment transactions with cards, collection slips and online debit.

In addition, Braspag consolidates the accounts receivable process of Brazil‘s leading online stores, offering the most comprehensive range of services in the segment of online transaction processing.

This acquisition strengthens Cielo’s leadership in the online payment segment in Brazil through a significant presence in yet another link of the e-commerce value chain. This presence guarantees a unique position for stimulating and capturing the strong growth in this market.

Cielo will also expand its product portfolio with a more comprehensive offering that, in addition to including other payment methods such as collection slips and online debit, provides value-added services like financial reconciliation and anti-fraud intelligence tools, further strengthening the relationship with its clients.

Both companies will remain committed to meeting the needs of their clients, maintaining the current relationship models. Braspag will continue to provide services to clients that choose to use other acquirers, while, for its part, Cielo will continue to work in partnership with other gateways in the market to serve clients who choose other solutions.

Cielo S.A is the leading company in the merchant acquiring and payment processing industry in Brazil, with a 49% market share in terms of credit and debit card transaction volume. The total credit and debit card transaction volume amounted to R$541.9 billion in 2009, according to the ABECS.

Cielo has the largest domestic coverage in the Brazilian merchant acquiring and payment processing industry, with approximately 1.2 million active merchants, according to the joint report prepared by the Payment Card Industry. It is also present in more than 98.9% of Brazilian municipalities.

According to Cielo, as of July 1, 2010, the card industry, specifically the acquiring segment, has entered a new competitive landscape. A multi-brand scenario was installed and acquirers began capturing and processing multiple card brands.

29th May 2011