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U.S. Department of Justice attorneys still have not signed off on a deal allowing South Korean ATM manufacturer Nautilus Hyosung Inc. to purchase competitor Triton Systems of Delaware Inc. for an undisclosed price.
Nautilus Hyosung and Dover Corp., Triton's New York-based parent, announced July 29 they had reached an agreement concerning the sale of Triton.
At the time, Dover and Nautilus Hyosung executives said the deal would close Oct. 1.
As of today, the deal industry observers predicted would reshape the nation's off-premise ATM industry has not occurred. And it is not clear why there is a delay.
A Justice Department spokesperson would not discuss the matter.
Coppell, Texas-based Nautilus Hyosung America Inc., which is owned by Nautilus Hyosung Inc., says it is still waiting for word from Department of Justice attorneys.
"At this time, the acquisition is still pending regulatory approval by the U.S. Department of Justice, and it is still with them in the process," Carlos Siewczynski, vice president of North American Retail Self-Service Division of Nautilus Hyosung America Inc., wrote in an e-mail to ATM&Debit News.
James Phillips, director of North American Sales for Long Beach, Miss.-based Triton, says Nautilus Hyosung's lawyers are continuing to work with Justice Department attorneys to answer all their questions.
"We would have liked to have closed Oct. 1," Phillips says. "Both sides of the equation [Nautilus Hyosung and Triton] are very committed to the deal." Nautilus Hyosung announced in September plans for construction of research and development center at Triton's headquarters. The company says it will hire additional workers, including an undisclosed number of engineers.
Nautilus Hyosung also plans to expand Triton's Memphis, Tenn., service center.
If the Department of Justice agrees to the deal, the combined companies would control 70% of the $100-million-a-year off-premise ATM market, says Leon Majors, president of the Payments Systems Practice at Phoenix ESP Payments Research Group in Salisbury, Md.
The agreement also would serve as a launching pad for Nautilus Hyosung to enter the much more lucrative market of selling ATMs to U.S. banks and credit unions.
The company sold ATMs to New York-based Citibank, the ninth largest ATM bank owner, with 3,315 ATMs (ADN, 6/12). ATM
