Atlanticus has completed the acquisition of Mercury Financial, bringing the near-prime credit card specialist into its portfolio as a wholly-owned subsidiary. Mercury Financial operates a data-driven platform that issues branded and co-branded credit cards for consumers with near-prime credit profiles through partnerships with banks.
This deal strengthens Atlanticus’ ability to serve a broader range of borrowers by adding Mercury’s technology and expertise to its existing credit card offerings.
With the transaction, Atlanticus took on 1.3 million serviced credit card accounts and $3.2 billion in receivables, boosting its total to over 5 million accounts and more than $6 billion in managed balances. These additions position Atlanticus as a larger player in the U.S. credit card market, combining Mercury’s established program among the top 25 issuers with Atlanticus’ existing general-purpose, retail, patient financing, and dealer credit solutions.
Bringing Mercury Financial into the fold allows Atlanticus to expand its product mix and deepen its presence in the near-prime segment. Customers will benefit from a more diverse set of credit card features and marketing channels, while bank partners can utilize a unified system that supports both prime and near-prime portfolios. The combined platform aims to deliver a more consistent experience for cardholders and enhanced risk management tools for issuers.
Integration efforts will focus on optimizing the enlarged receivables portfolio and capturing cost synergies across operations. Atlanticus plans to streamline back-office functions, leverage shared technology infrastructure, and apply its data analytics capabilities to drive higher originations. In parallel, the company will explore new customer acquisition strategies and product extensions that tap into Mercury’s existing distribution relationships and Atlanticus’ broader market coverage.
The acquisition was financed with a cash purchase price of approximately $162 million, and it includes potential earn-out payments tied to future credit performance that exceeds Atlanticus’ base case projections. By structuring part of the consideration as performance-based, Atlanticus aligns incentives for continued portfolio health and growth under its management.
Advisors: Guggenheim Securities served as financial advisor and Troutman Pepper Locke and Willkie Farr & Gallagher served as legal counsel to Atlanticus in this transaction. Deutsche Bank Securities served as financial advisor to the seller and Mayer Brown served as legal counsel to the special committee of the board of the seller in this transaction. Colin M. Adams of Uzzi & Lall served as a Special Committee of Mercury’s Board of Directors, which approved the transaction.
KEY QUOTES:
“First and foremost, let me welcome the Mercury team members to the Atlanticus family. Through your investment in technology and rigorous focus on data and analytics, you have built an impressive platform and we are excited to have you as part of our ongoing growth plans.”
“We are pleased to add the technology and near prime expertise of Mercury to expand our reach, advance our growth efforts, and leverage the scale that the combined companies create to bring a best-in-class product offering at the lowest possible cost to an even broader consumer segment.”
“Having purchased over $6 billion in credit card receivables portfolios throughout our history, we are highly confident in our ability to create value through the optimization of the $3.2 billion credit card receivables portfolio that has been managed by Mercury. We are equally excited about the incremental growth we can achieve through additional marketing channels, partners, and expanded product offerings that the Mercury platform enables.”
Jeff Howard, President and Chief Executive Officer of Atlanticus
