Ant Financial, the Alibaba affiliate controlled by billionaire Jack Ma, is close to sealing a deal to buy U.S. money-transfer service MoneyGram International Inc., the Wall Street Journal reported citing people familiar with the matter.
The newspaper didn’t disclose a price for the deal. Shares of Dallas-based MoneyGram closed Wednesday at $11.88, giving the company a market value of $630 million.
A deal would give China’s largest provider of online financial services a significant foothold in the U.S. as it begins to explore markets beyond a home arena it already dominates.
MoneyGram helps consumers and businesses move money around the world through hundreds