Early-stage discussions could value a 51% stake in Vocalink at around £400m, with UK banks as potential buyers.
Mastercard is in preliminary talks to sell a majority stake in its UK-based payments subsidiary Vocalink. The move follows its 2016 acquisition of the firm for up to £869m, including performance-linked payments.
Vocalink operates critical UK payment infrastructure, processing over 90% of salaries, 70% of household bills, and 98% of state benefits. A 51% stake could fetch approximately £400m, though no formal offers have been made.
Potential buyers include DeliveryCo, a payments industry-backed entity, though its funding and governance are still being finalized. Any deal is unlikely to close before 2025.