Euronet Worldwide
| Company type | Public |
|---|---|
| |
| Industry | |
| Founded | June 22, 1994 in Budapest, Hungary |
| Headquarters | Leawood, Kansas, U.S. |
Key people | Michael J. Brown (Chairman, CEO, and President) Kevin J. Caponecchi (Executive Vice President and CEO, epay, Software and EFT Asia Pacific Division) Adam Godderz Juan C. Bianchi (Executive Vice President and CEO, Money Transfer Segment) Nikos Fountas (Executive Vice President and CEO, EFT Europe, Middle East and Africa Division) Martin L. Brückner Tony Warren |
| Revenue | Template:US$ (2024) |
| US$503.2 million (2024) | |
| US$306 million (2024) | |
| Total assets | US$5.835 billion (2024) |
| Total equity | US$1.23 billion (2024) |
Number of employees | 11,000 (2025) |
| Divisions |
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| Website | euronetworldwide |
Euronet Worldwide is a global electronic payments provider based in the United States with its headquarters located in Leawood, Kansas. The company delivers a broad range of services including automated teller machine (ATM) operations, point-of-sale (POS) processing, credit and debit card transaction handling, currency exchange, as well as software solutions for electronic financial services. Its portfolio of prepaid service providers encompasses Transact, PaySpot, epay, Movilcarga, TeleRecarga, and ATX.
By 2019, Euronet had established a network comprising 50,000 ATMs and 330,000 EFT POS terminals distributed across 170 nations.
History
Euronet was established in 1994 by Dan Henry and Mike Brown—brothers-in-law—in Leawood, Kansas. The company grew through strategic acquisitions and alliances. In 1998, it purchased ARKSYS, a software firm focused on electronic payment and transaction technologies. Four years later, in 2002, it entered into a joint venture with Hong Kong’s First Mobile Group Holdings Limited.
In April 2014, Walmart collaborated with Euronet’s subsidiary Ria Money Transfer to introduce Walmart2Walmart—a service facilitating money transfers among 4,000 Walmart stores within the United States. This initiative expanded internationally as Walmart2World in 2016, significantly broadening Euronet’s presence in the cross-border money transfer sector.
Ria extended its operations into the Middle Eastern market in June 2015 by acquiring IME, a regional money transfer company. By February 2020, Ria inaugurated its first retail outlet in Singapore and further widened its mobile application availability to European users by May of the same year. In July 2020, Ria partnered with Latin America’s largest convenience store chain OXXO to provide in-store money transfer capabilities.
In December 2018, Euronet secured an agreement with Mozambique to supply software solutions underpinning the country’s financial infrastructure. This included transaction processing systems, card issuance services, bill payment platforms, and digital wallet functionalities. Mozambique transitioned its entire payments ecosystem onto Euronet’s REN Foundation platform—allowing payment processors to modernize their technology without replacing existing hardware.
January 2020 marked a collaboration with Standard Chartered to implement dynamic currency conversion (DCC) at ATMs throughout Asia Pacific and the Middle East regions. Additionally, Euronet introduced a recurring billing platform for AppleCare products and partnered with AMBER Alert Europe to display missing child notifications on ATM screens. The following month saw a partnership with Amazon India aimed at supporting payment processing on Amazon’s mobile wallet service.
In September 2020, Euronet’s epay division entered into an agreement with Microsoft to handle recurring billing for mobile gaming retailers. Later that year in December 2020, Euronet expanded its ATM footprint by acquiring 700 non-branch ATMs from the Bank of Ireland for €20 million.
Acquisitions
- In February 2003, Euronet acquired e-pay, Ltd., a company specializing in electronic payment processing for prepaid mobile airtime top-up services in the United Kingdom and Australia. This deal laid the foundation for Euronet's prepaid processing division, which subsequently grew with the September 2003 acquisition of Austin International Marketing and Investments, Inc. (AIM), a U.S.-based firm, followed by the purchase of German company transact Elektronische Zahlungssysteme GmbH in November 2003.
- In 2007, Euronet expanded its global reach by acquiring Ria Money Transfer, a worldwide money transfer enterprise with a network of agents and company-operated outlets across North America, the Caribbean, Europe, and Asia. Ria further extended its presence in the Middle Eastern remittance sector in June 2015 through the acquisition of IME, a regional money transfer provider.
- The 2013 acquisition of Pure Commerce added access to a range of SaaS-based software applications to Euronet's portfolio.
- In May 2014, Euronet purchased HiFX, a UK-headquartered international payments firm, enhancing its cross-border payment capabilities in the UK, Australia, and New Zealand. This acquisition allowed Euronet to better serve affluent individuals as well as small and medium-sized enterprises.
- The July 2015 acquisition of xe.com, a digital platform providing foreign exchange rate information, strengthened Euronet’s online visibility and attracted users familiar with currency exchange.
- Acquiring Innova in April 2018 enabled Euronet to offer customers value-added tax refund services.
- In April 2020, Euronet entered the U.S. ATM outsourcing market by acquiring Dolphin Debit, a company specializing in ATM outsourcing services, thereby broadening its global outsourcing operations.
Controversies
In 2018, the Danish Consumer Council issued a warning about using Euronet ATMs due to their high fees, which were similar to charges incurred when withdrawing cash abroad. Euronet explained that this was because Danish banks did not collaborate to support Dankort, Denmark’s national debit card, at their ATM locations.
By January 2019, Amsterdam’s city authorities attempted to prevent the installation of new Euronet ATMs on storefronts, citing concerns over "excessive withdrawal fees and unfavorable currency exchange rates."
The Czech Ministry of Finance raised issues regarding dynamic currency conversion (DCC) at the European Union level. This prompted a 2020 EU regulation mandating ATMs to disclose exchange rates clearly as well as any differences from the European Central Bank benchmark rate. Supporters of DCC contend that associated fees improve transparency concerning overall transaction costs.
In 2019, Euronet faced criticism in Prague after installing hundreds of ATMs, some placed unlawfully on historic building facades causing permanent damage. One notable incident involved an ATM damaging a heritage site condemned by UNESCO.
In 2023, modifications to ATM interfaces implemented by Euronet in the Czech Republic and Poland led customers to inadvertently select a "Cash and Balance" option that imposed additional fees for balance inquiries even when only cash withdrawals were made. The Polish Office of Competition and Consumer Protection initiated an investigation into this practice.
Company operation
Euronet functions through three primary divisions: electronic funds transfer (EFT) processing, prepaid processing, and money transfer services.
- The EFT processing segment provides outsourcing solutions and network management for financial institutions and mobile operators via an extensive network of ATMs and POS terminals spanning Europe, Asia, and the Middle East.
- The prepaid processing division (ePay) distributes various prepaid products such as mobile airtime top-ups, long-distance calling cards, internet access plans, debit cards, gift cards, and mobile content including ringtones and games. Its operations cover regions including the United States, Europe, Africa, Asia Pacific, and the Middle East.
- The money transfer segment offers international money transfer and bill payment services mainly across North America, the Caribbean, Europe, and the Asia-Pacific region.
See also
External links
- 2015 Annual Report, featuring KPMG-audited financial statements
- Official Website