CCI clears Prosus-backed PayU's $4.7-bn acquisition of BillDesk

The deal is slated to become the second largest acquisition in the Indian digital space, after Walmart's $16-bn buyout of e-commerce behemoth Flipkart in 2018

The Competition Commission of India said on Monday that it has cleared online payments major PayU's $4.7-billion acquisition of payment gateway firm BillDesk.

"Commission approves acquisition of 100% of the equity share capital of https://bsmedia.business-standard.comIndiaIdeas.com (BillDesk) by PayU Payments," tweeted the anti-trust regulator on Monday.

Prosus, the Dutch-listed arm of the South African internet group, Naspers, announced in August last year that it would, along with its fintech subsidiary, PayU, acquire Mumbai-based BillDesk for $4.7 billion. BillDesk, operated by parent IndiaIdeas, provides online payment gateway services to help businesses with auto-settlements, etc.

The deal is slated to become the second largest acquisition in the Indian digital space, after Walmart’s $16-billion buyout of e-commerce behemoth Flipkart in 2018.

While announcing the acquisition, PayU said the combined entity would emerge as one of the top online payment services providers -- both globally as well as in India -- with an annual payment volume of $147 billion.