ST. JOHN'S, N.L. — Verafin of St. John’s has just hit the buyout jackpot, selling for US$2.75 billion in cash to Nasdaq.
Nasdaq, the U.S. exchange that handles billions in trades daily, announced the deal in a news release Thursday morning.
Nasdaq said it’s buying Verafin for the company’s world-leading software for detecting and fighting money laundering and other financial crime. The transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of 2021.
“The intelligent technology solutions Verafin has created are second-to-none, and that is evident in the company’s extraordinary growth and stellar client retention,” Nasdaq president and CEO Adena Friedman said in the release.
“Together with Verafin’s founders and employees, we look forward to building Nasdaq into a global leader in anti-financial crime management solutions.”
Friedman also said the deal means the buyer is “committed to supporting innovation and growth in St. John’s and Newfoundland and Labrador. We believe that Verafin will not only complement and grow our existing presence in Canada, but also represents a potential catalyst for further investment opportunities in the province and the country.”
Today, @Nasdaq announced an agreement to acquire @Verafin, a pioneer in cloud-based anti-financial crime management solutions.
— Nasdaq (@Nasdaq) November 19, 2020
Learn more: https://t.co/YpQdRw6YYO
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Verafin was founded in 2003 and was initially part of Memorial University’s Genesis Centre, an innovation hub for new businesses. Today, it provides more than 2,000 financial institutions in North America a cloud-based platform to help detect, investigate and report money laundering and financial fraud. The company has about 500 employees.
Verafin’s headquarters will remain in St. John’s, and Nasdaq said it will work with Memorial University and invest in the local tech ecosystem through the Genesis Centre.
“This investment by Nasdaq, a global leader in financial technology, is a major vote of confidence and a significant win for the province of Newfoundland and Labrador’s technology and innovation sector,” Jamie King, Verafin’s CEO, said in a release.
“Nasdaq’s clear commitments to the province will help foster prosperity and opportunity throughout the community as we continue to grow our business.
“Since we began discussions with Nasdaq, we felt their DNA strongly mirrored our own core values: innovation, teamwork, entrepreneurship, and a commitment to continued growth and development. Together with Nasdaq, we will be a clear leader in expanding the fight against illicit finance by delivering our capabilities to a global client base from our headquarters in St. John’s.”
According to the release, Nasdaq will also look to help Memorial University’s scholarship program grow as a means to support Verafin’s labour needs and the province’s tech sector. Nasdaq will also fund and supervise at least six Mitacs fellowships annually for master’s and PhD students at MUN. The company also announced a new $1-million research and development partnership project with the Genesis Centre.
"Verafin’s innovative fraud and anti-money laundering detection platform, combined with Nasdaq’s leading trade and market surveillance solution, will empower Nasdaq to play an increasingly important role in building stronger economies around the world,” said Friedman.
“The intelligent technology solutions Verafin has created are second-to-none, and that is evident in the company’s extraordinary growth and stellar client retention. Together with Verafin’s founders and employees, we look forward to building Nasdaq into a global leader in anti-financial crime management solutions.”
