Intuit to buy Check Inc for $360 million

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Intuit Inc INTU.O, developer of tax-preparation software TurboTax, said it had entered into a definitive agreement to buy bill-payment service Check Inc for $360 million in cash and other considerations.

The acquisition will help accelerate Intuit's ability to offer bill payments across small business and personal finance products and create opportunities to retain, attract and serve additional customers, Intuit said in a statement on Tuesday.

The deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2014. (Full Story)

Check, founded in 2007, is headquartered in Palo Alto, California and has its development center in Israel.

Once the transaction closes, Check will join Intuit's Consumer Ecosystem Group and its Israeli site will become an Intuit location. Guy Goldstein, Check's co-founder and CEO, will serve as vice president, Intuit said.

Check's smartphone app is used by more than 10 million people to track and pay their bills, according to the company. The Check app monitors bank accounts and credit cards and sends reminders to people when bills are due or funds are low. It also pays bills automatically.

The deal signed on Friday is the latest in a slew of acquisitions made by Intuit since last year as it expands its suite of tools for individuals and small businesses, the Wall Street Journal reported earlier. (http://r.reuters.com/haf69v)

In November last year, Mountain View, California-based Intuit, also known for its personal finance software Quicken, had agreed to buy Prestwick Services, a workers' compensation payment solutions provider.

"Our commitment to solving important personal finance problems is steadfast," said Barry Saik, general manager of Intuit's Consumer Ecosystem Group. "By joining with Check, we continue to address consumer needs and are taking the next step in the evolution of personal finance capabilities."

U.S. consumers were expected to pay more than 14.7 billion bills in 2013, said Intuit, citing an Aite Group report using the most recently available data. Online and mobile payments were expected to account for nearly half of all bills paid that year.

"Consumers increasingly want mobile apps that allow them to take action with their money and help them accomplish every day financial tasks, such as bill pay and household budgeting," Intuit said.

Check has raised nearly $50 million in funding since 2008. Its most recent financing round in September 2013 raised $24 million from Pitango Venture Capital, Menlo Ventures and Morgenthaler Ventures.

The Globes financial newspaper reported on its website that Check's revenue was expected to grow to $20 million in 2014 from $15 million in 2013.

(Reporting by Steven Scheer in Jerusalem, Arnab Sen in Bangalore and Sarah McBride in San Francisco; Editing by Gopakumar Warrier and David Evans)