Worldline H1 2026: Merchant Services up 1.8% organically, leverage below 2x six months early

Worldline reported H1 2026 revenue of €1,736m on a fully pruned basis, down 0.2% organically. Merchant Services revenue was €1,373m, up 1.8% organically, with acquiring merchant sales value of €245bn up 4.3% and acceptance transactions up 6.6%. Adjusted EBITDA was €294m at a 16.9% margin. Net debt including leases fell from €2,219m at end-2025 to €1,165m, taking leverage below 2.0x adjusted EBITDA six months ahead of plan.

Full-year revenue guidance was cut from low-single-digit organic growth to flat-to-marginally-positive; the €630m–€650m adjusted EBITDA target was confirmed and free cash flow guidance improved.

Worldline is the largest acquirer in continental Europe, and its balance sheet — not its growth — was the existential question after the 2025 capital raise. Leverage below 2x removes the immediate financing risk and buys management time, but a second consecutive downgrade of the revenue outlook confirms that merchant volume growth is not yet translating into revenue, keeping pricing pressure on European acceptance visible in the numbers.

Whether Merchant Services organic growth holds above the MSV-to-revenue gap in H2, and whether the confirmed EBITDA range survives once the divested units drop out of the base.

• investors.worldline.com
• GlobeNewswire