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Merchant acquirers searching for new accounts outside the United States have three options, Paul R. Garcia, chairman, president and CEO of Atlanta-based Global Payments Inc., said this week at the Electronic Transactions Association Strategic Leadership and Networking Forum in Chicago. The three options Garcia stated are for acquirers to start operations where a company has no existing business relationships, to form a partnership or joint venture with another company, or to purchase another company. Garcia, whose company recently announced a joint venture in the United Kingdom with banking giant HSBC (CardLine, 6/17) and bought a Russian merchant acquirer (CardLine, 9/9), advises against the "greenfield" strategy–going into a foreign market with no existing business partner. Business and cultural differences abound that could complicate operations, he said. Global Payments has had success with the second option, finding a business partner. When courting that partner, Garcia says the challenge is to "convince the new partner the deal is worth more with you than without you." As for buying companies, Garcia says the essential decision to make is that the prospective company believes it will be better off under new ownership than if it did not chose the potential buyer.
