A U.S. dollar note is seen in front of a stock graph in this November 7, 2016 picture illustration. Picture taken November 7. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration
NEW YORK (Reuters) -Flywire, a U.S. payments processor with a market value of $2.3 billion, is exploring a sale after attracting takeover interest, according to people familiar with the matter.
Boston, Massachusetts-based Flywire is working with investment bankers at Qatalyst Partners to evaluate interest from potential buyers, which include private equity firms, the sources said.
The talks are at an early stage and no deal is certain, the sources said, requesting anonymity because the matter is confidential.
Flywire's shares jumped more than 10% on the news on Friday.
Flywire and Qatalyst did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Flywire became an acquisition target as its shares were down about 25% to yesterday's close from the start of the year, underperforming a 5% rise in the S&P 500 Transaction and Payment Processing index.
The company's shares, which have been trading in New York since their initial public offering in 2021, have lost nearly half of their value since then.
Payments processors like Flywire thrived during the pandemic as customers turned to digital payment methods, but have since struggled to maintain growth amid increased competition and high inflation.
Founded in 2011, Flywire processes several billions of dollars in transactions and works with more than 4,000 customers in over 240 countries, according to its website.
The company is focused on facilitating payments in industries including education, healthcare and travel. It counts Singaporean state investor Temasek Holdings among its backers.
(Reporting by Milana Vinn in New York; Editing by Anirban Sen, Chizu Nomiyama and Conor Humphries)
