Novacap Wins 2025 PE Deal of the Year Award for Nuvei

June 19th, 2025Private Equity

When Phil Fayer founded Nuvei in 2003, his vision was simple yet ambitious: make it easier for businesses to accept payments from their customers. Over the next two decades, Fayer, who continues to serve as Chairman and CEO, led Nuvei’s transformation into a global fintech leader. Today, the company employs more than 2,700 people worldwide and enables enterprises to accept payments across virtually every market in which they operate.

In 2013, Nuvei reached a pivotal juncture. Having spent a decade as a payments reseller, Fayer recognized that the next phase of growth would require transitioning to an online and ecommerce-driven model. He also sought some liquidity, but without giving up control or stepping away from the business. It was during this time that he began searching for partners who could support the company’s evolution and long-term strategy.

That search led to a connection with Novacap, one of North America’s leading private equity investors and one of Canada’s most experienced private equity firms. “From our earliest conversations, it was clear that Novacap understood both the opportunity ahead and the importance of partnership,” Fayer reflects. “They were engaging, shared my vision for the future of the business, and demonstrated a deep commitment to supporting that journey.”

Novacap has won the 2025 PE Deal of the Year Award, sponsored by CIBC Innovation Banking, for its investment in Nuvei.

“With Novacap, I found true alignment — a partner who wanted to build and grow alongside us,” he explains. In 2017, Novacap, together with co-investor CDPQ, acquired a majority stake in Nuvei, with Fayer and the management team retaining 49.9% ownership.

“At Novacap, we believe that trust, alignment, and a shared long-term vision are essential for building transformative businesses,” says Pascal Tremblay, President & CEO, Managing Partner at Novacap. “Working alongside Phil and the Nuvei team exemplifies what can be achieved when these elements are present. This award is a testament not only to the success of the transaction, but to the partnership that propelled Nuvei to new heights.”

Dave Lewin, Lead Senior Partner at Novacap, echoes the sentiment: “Phil had a clear vision for evolving Nuvei into a global ecommerce leader, and from the outset, we were fully aligned on the ambition. We believed it could be achieved within five years — and, in fact, it was accomplished even faster than anticipated.”

Nuvei’s Growth Skyrockets

Following the investment, Novacap played a critical role in helping to professionalize Nuvei’s operations. This included upgrading the management team — adding key roles such as a president to drive new business and a new CFO. Novacap was also integral in building out the company’s internal M&A capabilities. “Our philosophy at Novacap is not just to provide capital but to transfer expertise, empowering our portfolio companies to drive their own success,” says Lewin.

This approach paid dividends: over the next few years, Nuvei completed more than 16 acquisitions, two of which were transformative. The most significant was the $889 million acquisition of SafeCharge in August 2019, which nearly doubled Nuvei’s size and accelerated its strategic pivot toward ecommerce.

“Acquiring SafeCharge was a critical inflection point for us. It doubled the size of the business and provided us the global platform we needed to scale in ecommerce,” notes Fayer.

Novacap also helped strengthen Nuvei’s go-to-market strategy and expand its international reach, particularly in Latin America and in complex verticals, such as regulated online gaming and global retail.

By 2020, these efforts culminated in Nuvei’s IPO on the Toronto Stock Exchange — the largest technology IPO in Canadian history at the time. “The IPO was never about an exit; it was a strategic financing event to further strengthen the company’s balance sheet and accelerate its global ambitions,” says Lewin. Nuvei followed up with a Nasdaq listing a year later, using the proceeds to fund additional strategic acquisitions.

Realizing the Vision — and Setting the Stage for the Future

Despite facing market headwinds in subsequent years, Nuvei continued to strengthen its fundamentals, with EBITDA growing from $40 million in 2017 to over $450 million in 2024. Recognizing the company’s intrinsic value, Nuvei’s leadership team and shareholders initiated a process that ultimately led to a $6.3 billion take-private transaction led by Advent International.

Demonstrating their strong belief in the company’s long-term potential and continued trust in its founder and management team, Novacap not only re-invested but also raised a dedicated continuation vehicle to support the next chapter of Nuvei’s growth. Reflecting on the journey, Fayer shares: “Novacap proved to be an exceptional partner — deeply knowledgeable, entrepreneurially minded, and committed to building something lasting. I am incredibly proud of what we accomplished together and excited for what lies ahead.”