Blackhawk Acquires GiftCards.com and OmniCard.com
Blackhawk Network has acquired GiftCards.com, which sells digital and physical prepaid gift card solutions to consumers through a high-trafficked gift card U.S. website, and OmniCard.com, which sells customized prepaid incentive and reward solutions for business clients, for approximately $120 million.
The deal will be funded using a combination of cash on hand and borrowings under an existing credit facility and will add both new sites and customers to Blackhawk’s rapidly expanding ecommerce businesses.
The addition of another gift card website to its roster is expected to enhance Blackhawk’s leadership in the gift card ecommerce market, said Talbott Roche, president of the Pleasanton, Calif.-based Blackhawk Network. “By merging our current ecommerce offerings and the distinctive assets offered by GiftCards.com, we’ll be able to deliver the broadest selection of gift cards to current and future customers, both individual consumers and corporate buyers.”
GiftCards.com offers differentiating features, including its GiftLocal product which uses the open network as a gift card solution for local merchants and a “virtual” Visa gift card delivered by email or in a mobile app.
“I couldn’t imagine a better pairing than with Blackhawk Network,” added Jason Wolfe, CEO of GiftCards.com. “We’re confident that our customers will benefit significantly from the expanded reach, products and services that Blackhawk has to offer.”
Added David Jones, general manager of global digital and e-commerce at Blackhawk Network: “By adding GiftCards.com to Blackhawk’s suite of gift card ecommerce solutions, we expect to broaden our open and closed loop product offerings and provide more ways customers can purchase gift cards through more websites and mobile applications."
Jones also praised the GiftCards.com team for building "a leading solution for online… [which] fits extremely well with our digital solutions direction and vision.”
The acquisition became effective Jan. 5, 2016, when Blackhawk purchased the ownership interests of Omni Prepaid, LLC from Wolfe, LLC which in turn resulted in the acquisition of GiftCards.com, LLC and OmniCard, LLC. The acquisition is consistent with Blackhawk’s growth strategy around its digital product expansion and is expected to be accretive to Blackhawk net income in fiscal 2016.