With headquarters in London and an operations hub in Kent, DNA currently serves over 45,000 merchants ranging from major online and offline retailers to SMEs, providing them with over 70,000 terminals which make over 20 million transactions worth over £600m a month . DNA is one of just a few players in the UK and Europe with fully cloud based omni-channel payment processing capabilities, and also provides a variety of SaaS and PaaS solutions to major global acquirers and payment schemes.

The investment by Alchemy sees DNA well positioned to benefit from the strong market opportunity, with the UK beginning to see signs of a recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic.

Arif Babayev and Nurlan Zhagiparov, the founders of DNA, commented “Alchemy’s investment marks a historic day for DNA and is a huge endorsement of our company and our technology. We have been looking for the right partner with the right ethos, vision and experience and we are lucky to have found this partnership with Alchemy.

The past year has been difficult for businesses of all sizes, and at DNA we have been fully dedicated to helping our customers manage through the pandemic. In the past few months DNA has expanded our e-comm solutions and payment methods, providing merchants with Pay by Link, Checkout v3, ApplePay, Pay by Bank, PayPal, Open Banking and many other new capabilities.

This transaction will allow us to accelerate our growth, helping more merchants accept payments quickly and easily, both in-store and online. Our technology and vertical integration give us an unparalleled advantage in servicing our partners and customers, but also provide a great foundation for bolt-on acquisitions.

This investment will allow us to enhance our product offering and continue with our strategy of selective acquisitions to grow our presence not only in the UK but also internationally. We’ve more than doubled our estate size and turnover in the past 18 months and the future is incredibly exciting for us.”

Toby Westcott, Partner at Alchemy Partners, commented “We are delighted to be partnering with DNA. Alchemy is always looking for opportunities to partner with talented business founders and uncover attractive investments that others may not be able to access.

We are focused on helping companies grow and develop, and having worked closely with both Arif and Nurlan during this extraordinary period caused by the Covid 19 pandemic, it was clear that DNA and Alchemy’s goals, missions and values were closely aligned. Merchants’ increasing need for omni-channel payments solutions combined with the strength of DNA’s product proposition creates a compelling investment opportunity and we are excited to join DNA on its journey to build a leading payments business in the UK and expand into Europe.”

DNA was advised by Proskauer, Houlihan Lokey and EY and Alchemy was advised by Macfarlanes and PWC on this transaction.

About Alchemy Partners

Established in 1997, Alchemy targets opportunities across Europe to partner with and work alongside management teams, helping them to create and grow value by solving problems, helping take difficult decisions and driving through change. Since inception Alchemy has completed over 190 transactions, investing over £4billion into companies and organisations spread across 14 countries.

About DNA Payments

DNA Payments Limited was founded by Arif Babayev and Nurlan Zhagiparov and is one of only a few independent, fully vertically integrated payments companies in UK and EU. DNA Payments Group owns the UK’s largest independent omnichannel gateway – Optomany, which services large corporates and medium size businesses. 123 Send Limited and Active Merchant Services limited is also part of DNA Payments that provide services to SME customers. They are also one of the largest providers of PaaS and SaaS services to multinational Acquirers and Banks.

DNA Payments is committed to build a transparent business model, so that customers can easily track their money at each stage whilst it is being processed through the use of fast and efficient technology. DNA Payments Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority, under the Payment Services Regulations 2017 for the provision of payment services.

If you’d like to receive more information about us and our services, please get in touch with us at: john.morrison@dnapayments.com