Overview
McDermott Will & Schulte has advised Atruvia AG, the technology and digitalization partner of the cooperative FinanzGruppe, on the acquisition of the Issuing Processing division of VR Payment, a subsidiary of DZ Bank.
As part of the transaction, responsibilities within the card business jointly operated by the two companies will be reorganized effective January 1, 2027: Going forward, Atruvia will be responsible not only for debit card issuing processing but also for credit card processing, working closely with DZ Bank. VR Payment, in turn, is expanding its merchant business and strengthening its POS network operations and acquiring divisions.
"A significant portion of all credit card transactions in Germany is processed through Atruvia's systems. The restructuring of the card business between Atruvia and DZ BANK is therefore of great importance to the German financial and banking sectors," says Dr. Christian Marzlin, co-lead partner at McDermott Will & Schulte. "We are very pleased to have had the opportunity to advise our long-standing client, Atruvia, on this complex transaction." Dr. Philipp Grenzebach adds: "The payments industry is undergoing profound change. By establishing an integrated card platform, the parties are strategically positioning themselves for the future of the banking business."
McDermott has been working with Atruvia for many years and has advised the company on numerous acquisitions, divestitures, and partnerships. In this latest engagement, McDermott provided support both for the transaction between Atruvia and VR Payment and for the joint realignment between Atruvia and DZ Bank.
The McDermott team was led by partner Christian Marzlin, Philipp Grenzebach and associate Annabelle Juliette Rau and included partners Alexander Hoppe, Christian Driessen-Rolf, Laura Stammwitz, Maximilian Clostermeyer and Steffen Woitz, counsel Claus Färber and Maximilian Meyer, as well as associates Jennifer Rogalski, Bastiaan Wolters, Cornelius Hille, Athanasia Eleftheriadou, Leonie Herzog, Max Küttner, Merlyn von Hugo and transaction lawyer Nils Stock.