Private equity firm Lovell Minnick Partners (LMP) has acquired Merchant Industry, a payment processor serving small and mid-sized businesses across the US.
Established in 2007 and headquartered in New York, Merchant Industry processes approximately $5 billion in annual transactions for more than 20,000 clients. The company’s services include credit card processing, point-of-sale systems, payment gateway APIs, and virtual terminals.
While financial terms remain undisclosed, the transaction structure allows Merchant Industry’s founders – CEO Leo Vartanov and chief revenue officer Chris Benabu – to retain a “substantial minority equity stake in the go forward business”, according to an LMP statement.
In addition, LMP states that the company will now be “managed by a new leadership team, beginning with the appointment of industry veteran Vaden Landers as chief executive officer upon closing”.
Landers brings over 30 years of payments sector experience, holding various leadership positions at Global Payments, MerchantE, and Singular Payments. He currently serves as a strategic advisor to M&A firm MAPP Advisors and maintains investment interests in Paymogy.
On the deal for Merchant Industry and the company’s future direction, Landers says: “This transaction allows us to build on the momentum Leo and his team have created, while providing strategic leadership, infrastructure, and capital to scale the business with purpose.” Adding, “We will actively pursue organic growth initiatives underpinned by an expansion in our distribution capabilities, complemented by strategic M&A.”
Source: https://www.fintechfutures.com/
