Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) shares are trading higher on Thursday. The company inked a deal to acquire Featurespace for an undisclosed amount.
Featurespace is a developer of real-time AI payments protection technology that addresses fraud and financial crime risks.
This acquisition is expected to enhance Visa's portfolio of fraud detection and risk-scoring solutions, supporting clients globally in growing and safeguarding their businesses.
The partnership between Visa and Featurespace is projected to empower clients to manage fraud in real-time and strengthen the payments ecosystem through AI-driven solutions.
This investment underscores Visa's commitment to ecosystem security, having invested billions in technology over the past five years to reduce fraud and enhance network security.
The transaction, which is subject to standard closing conditions, is expected to close in fiscal year 2025.
Antony Cahill, Global Head of Value-added Services at Visa, stated, "Providing our clients with solutions that can adapt to and anticipate the changing threat landscape is of the utmost importance. Featurespace's strong foundation in AI will enhance our existing product portfolio and enable us to address our clients' most complex and pressing challenges."
As of June 30, Visa's cash and cash equivalents stood at $19.7 billion.
This month, Visa planned to launch an account-to-account (A2A) payment service in the U.K. in early 2025, using open banking technology.
Investors can gain access to the stock via iShares U.S. Financial Services ETF (NYSE: IYG) and SPDR Select Sector Fund - Financial (NYSE: XLF).
Price Action: V shares are up 1.21% at $272.91 at the last check Thursday.