JPMorgan drops $500 million on healthcare payments firm InstaMed in largest acquisition since the financial crisis

Alex Morrell

May 17, 2019, 20:16 IST

JPMorgan drops $500 million on healthcare payments firm InstaMed in largest acquisition since the financial crisis

JPMorgan just made its largest acquisition since the financial crisis.

JPMorgan on Friday agreed a deal to acquire InstaMed for $500 million.
The deal for the healthcare payments tech company expands JPMorgan's already vast corporate payments operation.
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JPMorgan Chase has acquired healthcare payments company InstaMed for $500 million, the bank's largest acquisition since financial-crisis era buyouts of Bear Stearns and the assets of Washington Mutual.

The bank on Friday said it had agreed to pay $500 million for the Philadelphia-based company, which has roughly 300 employees and processed $94 billion in transactions last year, according to a report from CNBC's Hugh Son.

The deal helps expand JPMorgan's already vast corporate payments infrastructure. The bank already moves some $6 trillion for companies around the world every day.

"We've made significant investments in our Wholesale Payments business over the years and this acquisition will give us a unique advantage in one of the fastest growing sectors," Takis Georgakopoulos, the global head of wholesale payments, said in a statement announcing the deal.

JPMorgan has ambitions to dominate the global payments business - a $300 billion opportunity - Georgakopoulos recently told Credit Suisse.

Scale is crucial in that business, and InstaMed, which automates billing across the spectrum of healthcare companies, will bolster that effort as well as provide access to the tech company's world of existing clients and relationships.

Acquisitions have been rare at JPMorgan since the global economic collapse, when it bought Bear Stearns and assets of Washington Mutual. The company bought PayPal competitor WePay in 2017, but has more commonly invested in or partnered with tech startups.