Fidelity National Information Services has moved to close one of the most consequential legal chapters tied to its ill-fated Worldpay acquisition, agreeing to a cash settlement totaling $210 million.
The agreement resolves claims brought by institutional investors who accused the payments and banking technology company of misleading the market in the aftermath of its 2019 purchase of Worldpay — a transaction that once positioned FIS as a dominant force in global payments, but later became a source of sustained scrutiny.
According to court filings, the settlement — finalized in mid-December — would translate into a recovery of roughly $0.42 per eligible share. That figure, however, is expected to decline to an average of about $0.32 once legal fees, expenses, and accrued interest are deducted. The deal still requires formal judicial approval before funds can be distributed.
Despite agreeing to the payout, FIS and the executives named in the case maintain that the settlement reflects no admission of fault. Current CEO Stephanie Ferris and former chief executive Gary Norcross are among the defendants who have explicitly rejected claims that they misrepresented facts, violated securities laws, or caused investor losses.
The lawsuit centered on allegations that FIS overstated the strategic value and performance outlook of Worldpay following the acquisition, thereby inflating the company’s stock price. Plaintiffs argued that a series of disclosures later contradicted earlier statements, triggering a sharp market correction.
Court records show that FIS shares fell steeply during the period in question. By February 2023, the stock had dropped to roughly $66, marking a decline of more than one-third from its mid-2022 levels.
The Worldpay acquisition itself was massive in scale. FIS agreed in 2019 to purchase the payments processor for $35 billion, a figure that climbed to approximately $43 billion once debt was factored in. The deal followed Worldpay’s brief ownership under Vantiv, which had acquired the business just a year earlier.
At the time, then-CEO Gary Norcross publicly framed the acquisition as a necessary step in an industry where size and integration were becoming decisive competitive advantages. That narrative unraveled over the following years.
Norcross departed the company in 2022 earlier than anticipated and did not assume the executive chairman role previously outlined by the board. Leadership passed to Ferris, who soon reversed course on Worldpay’s place within FIS.
By 2023, the company had concluded that Worldpay no longer aligned with its long-term strategy. FIS struck a deal to sell a controlling stake in the business to private equity firm GTCR for $11.7 billion, implying a valuation significantly below the original purchase price.
That transaction closed last year, but the reshuffling continued. In 2024, Global Payments acquired Worldpay from FIS and GTCR in a $24.25 billion deal, marking yet another turn in the asset’s turbulent ownership history.
The investor group behind the lawsuit included major public retirement and investment funds, among them Nebraska’s Investment Council and multiple North Carolina pension systems. The settlement class covers shareholders who held FIS stock between May 2020 and February 2023 — a period defined by shifting narratives around Worldpay’s performance and value.
With the settlement now in place, FIS appears intent on drawing a line under a deal that reshaped its balance sheet, leadership, and reputation — and ultimately forced a strategic reset.