Fidelity National Information Services Inc. (FIS) announced it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire the issuer processing business of Global Payments Inc. (GPN) for $13.5 billion. FIS expects to finance the acquisition by issuing debt and selling its 45% equity stake in Worldpay to GPN. We expect the transaction to close in the first half of 2026, subject to regulatory approvals. We forecast S&P Global Ratings-adjusted leverage will increase to about 3.9x at close but reduce back to about 3x in less than two years. We affirmed our ?BBB? rating with a stable outlook. Despite integration risk, we view the acquisition as a good strategic fit that should be easier to integrate than Worldpay, and the new management team
