UK FinTech CAB Payments has rejected a proposed £241 million bid from American payments giant StoneX.
StoneX, a Fortune 500 firm listed on New York’s Nasdaq exchange, was considering a bid for CAB Payments, which has endured a torrid time as a listed company.
CAB had previously rejected two rival takeovers from shareholder Helios Consortium – the latter for £213m – and StoneX said it was hopeful of winning the support from the company’s shareholders, including Helios, before it tabled the bid officially.
However this morning CAB said its independent board members – excluding Nitin Kaul and Henry Obi CBE, who represent the interests of Helios – had unanimously decided the StoneX bid ‘significantly undervalues CAB Payments and its future prospects’. Before rejecting it, it said it had consulted with its larger shareholders.
CAB cited a significant improvement in the company’s financial and operational performance in FY25 as well as the medium-term financial guidance provided to the market in its 2025 results.
The proposed offer was 95 pence per share, representing a 32% premium to the closing share price of 72p on 30th January 2026 – the last business day before Helios Consortium’s first bid was proposed.
It represented a 11% premium to Helios’s second offer of 85p per share, as announced on 2nd March 2026.
“StoneX sees a high degree of complementarity between CAB Payments and StoneX’s Payments business, with the potential combination of both creating a leading, global specialist in emerging markets payments,” StoneX said at the start of the week.
“StoneX is therefore confident that it is the best long-term owner and custodian of CAB Payments, with the potential combination unlocking incremental opportunities for key stakeholders.”
StoneX has approximately 5,400 employees and serves more than 80,000 commercial, institutional, and global payments clients, and more than 400,000 retail accounts, from more than 80 offices spread across five continents.
CAB floated in 2023 with a market cap of £851m but has endured a torrid time as a listed company. Its share price plummeted more than 70% in the first three months of public trading.
However after reporting that it expects to deliver a stronger-than-expected performance for FY25, its share price has begun to rebound at the start of 2026.
The company, which specialises in helping businesses move money into and out of emerging markets, is now forecasting total income of around £119m for 2025.
That would be well ahead of market expectations, where consensus had been pointing to £110.1m.
The group said its performance has been driven by increased transaction volumes, a growing client base and new product capabilities, alongside progress deepening relationships with central banks and regulators in key markets.
It also expanded its international presence during the year, opening a New York office in December and securing a licence in principle to operate in Abu Dhabi in October.
Before trading opens this morning, CAB Payments has a share price of 90p and market cap of around £229m after its shares rose 11% following the potential StoneX offer announcement.
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