Vista Equity Partners is considering a range of strategic options for financial software provider Finastra, including a potential sale that could value the business at several billion dollars, according to a report by Reuters citing unnamed people familiar with the matter.
The private equity firm is working with Morgan Stanley on the review, which is at an early stage and could lead to a full disposal of Finastra, a partial stake sale or a combination with another company through a merger or acquisition, the sources said.
Finastra has already attracted interest from potential buyers, with Blackstone among the investment firms understood to be assessing a possible bid. Vista, Finastra, Morgan Stanley and Blackstone all reportedly declined to comment.
There is no certainty that the strategic review will result in a transaction, the sources said, with two highlighting that Finastra could command a valuation above the high-single-digit billions of dollars. Another source said conventional earnings multiples for a specialist software company could put its value as high as $12bn. Finastra is expected to generate approximately $650m of EBITDA this year, according to one of the sources.
London-headquartered Finastra develops software for banks and other financial institutions, covering areas including payments, lending and corporate banking. Vista created the business in 2017 by combining Misys with Canada’s D+H.
The company has since undergone a significant restructuring under chief executive Chris Walters, who took the role in January 2025. The strategy has involved disposing of non-core operations and concentrating the business around payments and lending technology.
As part of that reshaping, Finastra sold its treasury and capital markets division to Apax Partners, with the business subsequently relaunched as Teciem. In June, Finastra also agreed to sell its universal banking division to Pollen Street Capital.
