U.S. private equity firm TPG has submitted a €1 billion (approximately $1.15 billion) offer for the digital banking solutions unit of Italian payments group Nexi, the company confirmed in a press release on Friday, 7 November. The proposal, which was reportedly presented to Nexi’s board earlier this week after months of negotiations, forces a high-stakes decision for the Milan-based company.
Nexi’s board is now set to evaluate the offer, which is reportedly valid until mid-December. The move pressures the payments processor, which has seen its market value plummet by roughly 75% over the last four years, to consider a strategic divestment. A sale of the unit could allow Nexi to streamline its operations and focus on its higher-growth core businesses, such as merchant services and card issuing.
News of the bid provided immediate relief to Nexi’s stock, which had plunged to a record low on Thursday. Shares in Milan-listed Nexi rose as much as 6.3% on Friday following reports of the offer.
In its official statement, Nexi confirmed it had received an offer from TPG for “several assets” within its digital banking solutions business, but it did not include the value of the bid and noted that the proposal was “subject to some conditions”.
This is not the first time Nexi has explored a sale of the unit, which provides technology solutions to banks to support their digital operations. In 2023, the company held discussions with Italian infrastructure fund F2i for a potential deal valued between €700 million and €800 million, but the two parties were ultimately unable to reach an accord, according to reports.
TPG itself had previously floated a preliminary offer of around €800 million in March 2025. Those earlier negotiations reportedly cooled due to shareholder resistance and “concerns over national strategic interests.” The new, higher-value binding offer indicates a more serious and aggressive push from the U.S. fund.
Any potential deal will likely face scrutiny given that Italy’s state lender, Cassa Depositi e Prestiti (CDP), is Nexi’s second-largest investor with a 19.4% stake.
The digital banking arm is Nexi’s smallest segment. It generated €274 million in revenue during the first nine months of 2025, far less than the €1.5 billion from its merchant services division and €852 million from its card issuing business over the same period.