MoneyLion stockholders approve acquisition by Gen Digital

MoneyLion announced Thursday its shareholders voted in favor of a deal for the fintech to be acquired by Gen Digital. 

Gen Digital, the parent company of cybersecurity brands Norton, Avast, LifeLock, Avira, AVG, ReputationDefender and CCleaner, announced in December it had entered a definitive agreement to acquire MoneyLion for $82 a share, approximately $1 billion in cash value.

The companies said in a statement Thursday that all regulatory approvals have been obtained and the deal is slated to be completed by the following week on April 17. Once it goes through, MoneyLion will be a subsidiary of Gen Digital and its common stock will no longer be listed on any markets. 

MoneyLion has focused on building up its artificial intelligence solutions in recent years, which made it attractive to Gen Digital. The acquiring company said in the initial announcement that it intended to "extend Gen's identity solutions into offering comprehensive financial wellness through MoneyLion's full-featured personal finance platform."

"Gen has a family of consumer brands that's dedicated to protecting people's privacy, identity and financial assets so they can live their digital lives securely and without worry," said Vincent Pilette, CEO of Gen Digital, in December. "By bringing MoneyLion into the Gen family, we're not only helping people protect what they already have, we're extending our capabilities to enable people to better manage and grow their financial wealth. We look forward to welcoming the MoneyLion team, so together, we can power digital and financial freedom."

The soon-to-be-acquired fintech has more than 20 million customers as of its most recent earnings report and offers tools through its platform and API for companies to add embedded finance to their business models with data driven by AI. 

Fintech

Despite few deals, appetite for fintech M&A remains: KPMG

The firm's research found there is pent up demand, though political uncertainty complicates that outlook.

By Emma Kinery

March 17

Its products include a personal finance platform focused on credit building and money management as well as a B2B2C white-label artificial intelligence platform. In October MoneyLion launched MoneyLion Checkout, a search engine that allows customers to research and compare third-party financial product offers like credit cards, savings accounts and loans. 

MoneyLion customers can also buy and sell select cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin and ether through their checking accounts.

MoneyLion issued a robust year-end earnings report in February, with co-founder and CEO Dee Choubey stating "2024 was MoneyLion's strongest year ever" featuring "a number of records driven by exceptional execution."

Revenue growth for the company was up 29% year over year to $546 million with a net income of $9 million compared to a net loss of $45.2 million for fiscal year 2023. The fintech said it reached record adjusted EBITDA of $92 million, representing a 17% adjusted margin. 

"Joining Gen accelerates our vision by leveraging their global reach, trusted brands and powerful ecosystem," Choubey said in the December planned acquisition announcement. "We'll deliver MoneyLion's leading personal financial management tools and embedded financial marketplaces to Gen's users while bringing Gen's strong identity, trust and cybersecurity solutions to our customers."

The acquisition was processed nearly a year before the slated deadline. When plans were announced in December, the companies estimated the proposed acquisition would close in the first half of fiscal year 2026.