News

Co-op Financial Services to acquire interest in Canada's Everlink

Co-op will purchase shares from FIS to become majority ownership of the payments solutions provider, which serves Canadian CUs, banks and ISOs.

April 16, 2015

Co-op Financial Services has signed an agreement to purchase shares in Everlink Payment Services Inc. from a subsidiary of FIS, according to a press release. The deal will give Co-op majority ownership of the payments solutions provider, which serves Canadian credit unions, banks and ISOs from its headquarters near Toronto, Ontario.

Upon closing, the company will join minority-owner Celero Solutions of Calgary, Alberta, in ownership of Everlink. Celero provides information technology solutions to credit unions and other financial services organizations across Canada.

According to Co-op President and CEO Stan Hollen, Everlink provides a broad range of payments solutions similar to those provided by Co-op. These include card issuance, fraud management, ATM managed services, point-of-sale and debit payment processing primarily for credit unions.

"[W]e see this investment as a foundation step to a comprehensive North America-wide network and processing solution for credit unions, making it even more convenient for members in both Canada and the U.S. to use ATMs and their debit cards."

Co-op foresees inviting other Canadian cooperatives into ownership participation in Everlink to further contribute to the growth of the credit union movement, the press release said.

"We are pleased to have a strong cooperative system player like Co-op enter the partnership in Everlink," said Celero CEO Bob Reczka. "Co-op brings significant expertise and scale advantages that will benefit participating financial institutions across Canada. ... [T]he intent to expand Canadian credit union ownership in Everlink has been a fundamental principle of this transaction from the outset."

"The growing importance of member experience at the self-service channel is one of the leading issues for financial institutions in 2015," said Mark Ripplinger, President and CEO of Everlink. "The resources that Co-op brings to bear on this market trend ... will substantially benefit our clients and the entire credit union movement in Canada."

Canada is home to approximately 700 credit unions and caisse poplulaires with more than 10 million members.