Finance · Profile from Finance Research Companion
Fiserv
The Milwaukee-born processor that runs the back offices of thousands of US banks and credit unions and, since its 2019 all-stock merger with First Data, one of the largest merchant acquirers in the world through the Clover point-of-sale platform. Built by more than three decades of acquisitions, it was for years a model of steady, double-digit earnings growth. That image broke on October 29, 2025, when a new chief executive, Mike Lyons, cut the year's organic growth outlook from ~10% to ~3.5–4% and the shares fell ~44% in a day, the worst day in the company's history. Lyons left for Truist in June 2026; co-president Takis Georgakopoulos, a former JPMorgan payments head, now runs a company whose 2026 organic revenue is guided to fall.
At a glance
- Founded
- 1984, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, by the merger of First Data Processing (Milwaukee, led by George Dalton) and Sunshine State Systems (Tampa, led by Leslie Muma) (company history)
- Headquarters
- Milwaukee, Wisconsin (corporate HQ moved back to Milwaukee from Brookfield in 2024, reported); large operations in New Jersey, Omaha, Atlanta and elsewhere
- Ownership / structure
- Public. Nasdaq IPO 1986 as FISV; moved to the NYSE as "FI" in 2023 (reported, verify date); returned to Nasdaq as FISV on November 11, 2025 (10-K)
- Leadership (2026)
- Takis Georgakopoulos, CEO and director since June 15, 2026; Dhivya Suryadevara, co-president; Paul Todd, CFO since October 31, 2025 (ex-Global Payments CFO); Gordon Nixon, chairman (company)
- Segments
- Merchant Solutions (Clover, small-business and enterprise acquiring, Carat for large merchants, gateways) and Financial Solutions (core banking, digital banking, card issuer processing, debit networks STAR and Accel, bill payment, Zelle connectivity)
- Scale
- Adjusted revenue ~$19.8bn in 2025 (organic growth ~3.8%); adjusted operating income ~$7.4bn, margin ~37.4%; adjusted EPS $8.64; Clover revenue ~$3.3bn (+23%) (company results, February 2026, as reported)
- 2026 outlook
- Organic revenue −1% to flat; adjusted EPS $7.20–7.40 (cut August 6, 2026 from +1–3% and $8.00–8.30) (company)
- Regulatory status
- Not a bank. Supervised as a technology service provider to banks by the FFIEC agencies (OCC, Fed, FDIC); state money-transmitter licences; card-network and Nacha rules; merchant acquiring done through sponsor banks (company 10-K)
- Signature moves (incl. failures)
- 1984 founding merger; CheckFree (2007); First Data buys Clover (2012); First Data merger (2019); the Clover migration and pricing push (2024); Bisignano to Social Security and Lyons succession (2025); the October 2025 guidance collapse and "One Fiserv" reset; Lyons' exit, Georgakopoulos and the portfolio review (2026)
8 strategic moves analysed
Each one gets a full strategy file in the companion: context, the decision, the financing, what happened, and the lesson.
1984
Founding Merger of Two Bank Processors
Founding / merger
2007
CheckFree Acquisition
Acquisition
2012
First Data Buys Clover
Acquisition / launch
2019
First Data Merger
Merger (all-stock acquisition of First Data)
2024
Clover Migration and Pricing Push
Pricing change / product migration (later the subject of litigation)
2025
Bisignano to SSA and Lyons Succession
Leadership change
2025
Guidance Collapse and One Fiserv Reset
Restructuring / failure (guidance reset)
2026
Georgakopoulos CEO and Portfolio Review
Leadership change / restructuring (portfolio review)