Counting technology billionaire Mike Cannon-Brookes as its biggest shareholder,Tyro competes with industry giants Commonwealth Bank,Westpac,National Australia Bank and ANZ Bank in payments.
It is taking on the major banks a time of major change in how we pay for things:consumers have dumped cash in favour of electronic payments,and increasingly,online shopping. This is creating increased opportunities for new players.
However,it has been tough going for Tyro shareholders who bought into the company’s sharemarket float in late 2019:the stock is trading well below itslisting price.
Months after Tyro began trading on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX),the COVID-19 pandemic unleashed havoc on world markets. The company also suffered amajor outage last year,while rising interest rates have further wounded its share price – along with many other growth technology companies.
This month,Tyro’s board rejected what it said was a “highly opportunistic”non-binding takeover offer from a consortium led by tech-focused private equity firm Potentia Capital, but the bid has conditional support from Cannon-Brookes,who owns 12.5 per cent of Tyro shares.
Cannon-Brookes’ investment company Grok Ventures said it could support another offer – if one emerged – that was 25¢ a share higher than the current bid. The tech billionaire’s apparent willingness to sell has effectively put Tyro in play.
How it started:Tyro was founded in 2003 by entrepreneurs Paul Wood,Peter Haig and Andrew Rothwell as a specialist provider of electronic payment services to merchants. The company expanded into banking in 2016 when it gained a licence to take deposits.