One of the largest Fintechs in the US, SoFi, has acquired Galileo Financial Technologies for $1.2 billion in both cash and stock, according to a company release.
Galileo is a provider of a digital payments platform that is described as being “critical to checking and savings accounts.” Of course, SoFi has emerged as a leading stealth bank providing a broad portfolio of financial services to its customers. SoFi began life as an online lender in the student loan refi market but has leveraged the key position to become more of a Unicorn challenger bank.
Galileo is said to provide the “API standard” for card issuing, powering global payments worldwide. Galileo simplifies the process for businesses of every type and size to innovate and deliver Fintech including account set-up, funding, direct deposit, ACH transfer, IVR, early paycheck direct deposit, bill pay, transaction notifications, check balance, and point of sale authorization as well as dozens of other capabilities. Galileo is said to have processed over $53 billion of annualized payments volume in March 2020, up from $26 billion in September 2019, with accelerating growth.
SoFi Money is already being tightly integrated with Galileo’s payment platform including several of its leading account and events API functionalities.
Galileo and SoFi will work together to accelerate the pace of technology innovation to offer Galileo’s partners, and subsequently consumers everywhere, even more value.
SoFi said the acquisition strengthens its capabilities and the combination will extend the reach of its products to other Galileo partners in the United States and international markets while offering diversification and scale to SoFi’s existing infrastructure.
Anthony Noto, CEO of SoFi, issued the following statement:
“SoFi has established itself as a leader in the fintech sector, providing our more than one million members a full array of financial products to help them get their money right. The response by our members to our innovation across borrowing, saving, spending, and investing has motivated us to think bigger, bolder and more expansively given the insatiable consumer appetite for financial services innovation. Together with Galileo, we will partner to build on our companies’ strengths to drive even greater financial technology innovation, making those products and services available to both current and future partners. While we march forward on our mission to help people achieve financial independence through our own direct efforts, with Galileo, we can enable a broader ecosystem of companies to join us in helping the world achieve financial independence.”
Clay Wilkes, CEO of Galileo, said that SoFi has successfully built a diversified Fintech company and the products they are offering are ones their customers want:
“Distributing products through our enterprise class API is the vision behind this combination. I think it’s very powerful. We’re excited to work with SoFi to build on the services that have made Galileo the leading supplier of infrastructure services to leading financial, technology, and fintech companies. With the help of SoFi, we intend to continue to grow with and support all of our existing clients and the product roadmaps that they have defined.”
Wilkes is expected to remain as the leader of Galileo which will operate as an independent subsidiary.
The transaction is subject to regulatory approvals and typical closing conditions. Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC and Citigroup served as financial advisors and WilmerHale acted as legal advisor to SoFi. Qatalyst Partners served as financial advisor and Dorsey & Whitney acted as legal advisor to Galileo.