Lloyds buys digital wallet provider Curve

(Sharecast News) - Lloyds Banking Group said on Wednesday that it has bought London-based digital wallet provider Curve for an undisclosed sum. Curve's digital wallet platform brings all cards and alternative payment sources into one secure platform while adding "innovative" money-saving and loyalty features, Lloyds noted.

Authorised and regulated in the UK and EEA, the company processes billions in payments annually through its technology platform.

"Alongside the services that Curve currently offers to customers, the integration of Curve Pay, Curve's cutting-edge technology and digital wallet, into Lloyds Banking Group's current digital offering, will allow Lloyds Banking Group to offer its customers an enhanced payments experience within mobile banking," Lloyds said.

"The combination will provide our customers with expanded payment flexibility and access to advanced digital wallet features including switching past purchases across accounts, earning rewards on top of existing card benefits, accessing Pay Later solutions, and avoiding foreign exchange fees from any card linked to its app."

The acquisition is expected to complete in the first half of next year.

Lloyds said the deal is not expected to have a material impact on the group, or to impact full-year guidance for 2025 or 2026.

Although Lloyds did not provide any financial details, Sky News reported last week that the bank had agreed to pay £120m for Curve.

Last week, before the deal was confirmed, IDC Ventures - which has a 12% stake in Curve - voiced its opposition, saying it was "deeply concerned about the conduct of Curve's management and board during the current sale process".

It said the deal was not in the best interests of the company or its shareholders.

Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, said: "Having seen several smaller fintech competitors emerge in recent years and big tech firms muscling in on the mobile payments space, Lloyds is looking to step up its game through the acquisition of digital wallet provider Curve.

"No price tag has been disclosed but, in purely financial terms, this looks to be a modest deal both in the context of the upfront cost and the immediate impact on earnings.

"However, Lloyds will hope the deal can give it an edge as it adds a platform to its mobile banking services which allows users to integrate bank cards, loyalty cards and other alternative methods of payment in one place, with money-saving tools and loyalty rewards offered on top.

"An optimistic reading is that a combination of Lloyds' credentials as a well-established financial institution combined with the convenience factor offered by the services provided by Curve could prove to be a winner.

"The dominance of this space by the likes of Apple Pay and Google Pay could represent a significant hurdle to Lloyds' ambitions given their heavyweight backing."