Capital One to acquire Discover in $35.3B deal

Feb. 19 (UPI) -- Capital One on Monday evening announced it was acquiring Discover Financial Services in an all-stock transaction worth $35.3 billion.

Under the terms of the deal, Discover shareholders will receive a little more than one Capital One share for each Discover share they own, representing a premium of 26.6% based on Discover's Friday closing price of $110.49.

Capital One shareholders will own some 60% of the combined company with Discover shareholders holding the remaining 40%, it said.

The transaction is expected to close either late this year or in early 2025, and the deal is subject to regulatory approvals and approval by the shareholders of each company.

"Our acquisition of Discover is a singular opportunity to bring together two very successful companies with complementary capabilities and franchises, and to build a payments network that can compete with the largest payments networks and payments companies," Richard Fairbank, the founder, chairman and chief executive officer of Capital One, said in a statement.

"Through this combination, we're creating a company that is exceptionally well-positioned to create significant value for consumers, small businesses, merchants and shareholders as technology continues to transform the payments and banking marketplace."

With $478.5 billion in total assets, Capital One is among the largest banks in the United States, and the acquisition gives it access to Discover's global payments platform.

Though the smallest of the four U.S.-based global payments platforms, Discover's service includes 70 million merchant acceptance points in more than 200 countries and territories.

Capital One said the acquisition enables Discover's platform to be more competitive with the other three networks of American Express, MasterCard and Visa.

"The transaction with Capital One brings together two strong brands with enhanced ability to accelerate growth and maximizes value for our shareholders, enabling them to participate in the tremendous upside of the combined company," Michael Rhodes, chief executive officer and president of Discover, said.

"This agreement underscores the strength of our business and is a testament to the hard work of Discover employees. We look forward to a bright future as part of the Capital One family and to providing expanded opportunities for our loyal customers."