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Payments technology company Euronet Worldwide has acquiredDolphin Debit, a Houston-based company that services ATMs forcredit unions and other financial institutions.

Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, but thecombination adds Dolphin Debit's portfolio of more than 1,900 ATMsserviced for about 300 banks and credit unions to EuronetWorldwide's existing cache of 26,000 ATMs serviced, according to anannouncement about the deal. Euronet Worldwide also doespass-through processing on 136,000 ATMs.

"We have been aware of Euronet's position as a leader in theglobal ATM market for some time, so this is an exciting opportunityfor us to be able to contribute to the company's overall strategicvision," Dolphin Debit CEO Gary Walston said. "Euronet's vastresources and superior technology were important factors in ourdecision to find the right partner to further grow our existingbusiness while enabling us to continue to provide exceptionalservice and new innovations for our current customers."

Walston will remain CEO of Dolphin Debit, which will become aEuronet Worldwide subsidiary.

In the announcement about the deal, the companies also notedthat the acquisition could bring more processing expertise tocustomers, as well as more economies of scale. The companyestimated that the servicing on only 6% of bank and credit unionATMs is outsourced, leaving a large market opportunity, itsaid.

"ATM outsourcing in the United States historically has beenlimited to cash dispense and deposit transactions without anyadvanced processing services available," Euronet Worldwide Chairmanand CEO Michael J. Brown said. "Euronet can now offer more to thesecustomers with our technical abilities to process any transaction –digital or cash – worldwide. These are the services banks in theU.S. are increasingly being asked for by mobile-savvy customers andwe will be in an excellent position to elevate the technicalprofile and product portfolio of any bank through our outsourcingservices with Dolphin."

Dolphin Debit made one of its own acquisitions a short timeago.

In June 2019 it finalized its purchase of the Cypress, Texas-basedOutsource ATM, which primarily serves credit unions and banksin Texas and Louisiana. The deal added 65 financial institutions tothe company's list of clients.

Earlier in 2019, the company also announced a strategicpartnership with the Credit Union League of Connecticut, whichWalston said would help the company further expand in theNortheast, and it renewed its agreement to be a "strategic servicepartner" with the Mississippi Credit Union Association.

This latest acquisition comes at a very tumultuous time for theATM business, which is facing controversies about the "cleanliness" of cash, rolling outefforts to keep ATMs clean, and facing sudden increases in useafter federal stimulus checks began hitting consumer bank accounts inrecent weeks.

Recent data from the St. Petersburg, Fla.-based CUSO PSCU foundthat ATM withdrawals shot up 18.1% in just one week of April, andATM balance inquiries spiked 8.9% compared to the same week of2019. Many members were checking their accounts to see if theirstimulus checks had been deposited, PSCU said.