ROME (Reuters) – Italy has given Square Inc, the mobile payments firm of Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey, and China’s Tencent a conditional green light to invest in Italian start-up Satispay, a source close to the matter told Reuters.
Satispay said in November that new investors would provide fresh funds by subscribing a 68 million-euro ($82.57 million)capital increase and acquiring a minority stake for 25 million euros.
Square and Tencent, which plan to invest 15 million euros each in Satispay, needed Rome’s backing as the government has the right to block unwanted bids in strategic industries such as banking, telecoms and health.
The cabinet approved the deal on Feb. 22, the source said without giving details on the conditions that were imposed.
($1 = 0.8236 euros)
(Reporting by Giuseppe Fonte in Rome and Elisa Anzolin in Milan; editing by Agnieszka Flak)
