PARIS (Reuters) -Credit Agricole and payment services company Worldline have begun exclusive talks to set up a joint venture to provide payment services to businesses and their customers, they said on Wednesday.
The proposed tie-up aims to tap the 700 billion euros ($767.6 billion) of merchant sales in France, the companies said in a joint statement, with customers increasingly moving from cash to card payments.
Worldline's shares opened up 8.5% after the announcement, while Credit Agricole (EPA:CAGR)'s stock was up 0.4%
The two companies said there is room for growth in French digital payments market, where volumes of payments in cash are at around 40%.
The joint-venture, slated to be fully operational by 2025, would be majority owned by Worldline and fully consolidated in the payments company's accounts, they said.
It will involve an investment of 80 million euros, shared equally between Worldline and Credit Agricole, they said.
Credit Agricole has a target to increase sales stemming from payments by 20% by 2025.
The French bank previously had a "strategic partnership" focused on payments with German group Wirecard, which filed for insolvency in 2020.
The deal will be subject to regulatory approval and consultation with the two companies' works councils.
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