GLOBAL PAYMENTS INC (GPN)

Global Payments Inc. is a payments technology company that delivers software and services to financial institutions, businesses and consumers worldwide, with reach across North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific and Latin America. Its offerings cover payment processing, merchant acceptance solutions, business management software and value-added services. The company is headquartered in Georgia, has approximately 26,000 team members in 37 countries, is a Fortune 500 company and a member of the S&P 500, and trades on the NYSE under "GPN." It is running a transformation program to become a unified global operating company, consolidating technology organizations and centralizing operations, with related expenses expected through the first half of 2027.

Its Merchant Solutions segment enables customers to accept card, check and digital payments. Services include authorization, settlement and funding, chargeback and dispute management, terminal rental and sales, payment security, and billing and reporting. The segment also offers business management and specialty point-of-sale software and commerce enablement tools such as analytics, customer engagement, accounts receivable automation and inventory management. It is organized around three pillars: Point-of-Sale and Software Solutions (cloud POS for restaurant and retail, plus software for education, real estate and communities, unified under the Genius brand), Integrated and Embedded Solutions (payments embedded in partners' software, shopping carts and marketplaces), and Core Payments Solutions. Revenue comes mostly from fees based on a percentage of transaction value or a fee per transaction, plus software subscription, licensing and other value-added fees. The Issuer Solutions business, which provided core processing, card production, fraud and other services to card issuers, is reported as a discontinued operation.

Recent portfolio changes were significant. In January 2026, Global Payments acquired Worldpay Holdco, LLC from FIS and GTCR affiliates and simultaneously divested Issuer Solutions to FIS. It paid about $6.2 billion in cash and 43.3 million shares for the GTCR interest, and received about $7.7 billion in cash plus FIS's Worldpay stake. It also sold Heartland Payroll Solutions to Acrisure in September 2025 for about $1.1 billion and AdvancedMD in December 2024 for about $1.1 billion plus contingent consideration. Reportable segments will be realigned beginning in the first quarter of 2026.

Customers include merchants across many vertical markets, independent software vendors and technology partners, and merchants referred by ISOs and financial institutions. The company sells through a large direct sales force, financial institution partnerships, joint ventures, and wholesale and indirect relationships. Previously, Issuer Solutions served banks, credit unions, retailers, fintechs and neobanks. The company processes transactions for major card brands including American Express, Discover, JCB, Mastercard, UnionPay and Visa, and for domestic debit networks such as Interac. It settles funds under either a sponsorship model, using member financial institutions, or a direct membership model. As of December 31, 2025, about 50% of the workforce was in the Americas, 22% in Europe and 28% in Asia Pacific.

The markets are highly fragmented and competitive. In the U.S., the Merchant Solutions segment competes with Fiserv, Chase Paymentech, Elavon, Bank of America Merchant Services, Wells Fargo Merchant Services, Toast, Stripe, Shopify and Block. Internationally, it competes with financial institutions and providers such as Worldline, Nexi, Adyen, Block and Stripe. The company protects its technology and brands through patents, copyrights, trade secrets and trademarks, and it handles sensitive card and personal data that it safeguards with cybersecurity measures.