Ryan Reynolds invests in the Canadian fintech company Nuvei
Ryan Reynolds just invested in a Canadian fintech company. Jan Kruger—Getty Images
Ryan Reynolds has invested in a variety of businesses in recent years, from alcohol company Aviation Gin to budget mobile phone service Mint Mobile. Now Reynolds is investing again, this time in Nuvei, a fintech payment company based in Montreal.
“I know about as much about fintech as I did about gin or mobile a few years ago. But Nuvei is impressive, Reynolds said in a statement about his acquisition on Monday. “The management team is extremely intelligent and hard-working, and it’s time for a Canadian company to get the kind of attention American tech companies do.”
And, as he has done for other businesses, Reynolds starred in a short promotional video for the company, which he posted on Twitter.
I assure you of this… @nuvei will never build a rocket. pic.twitter.com/pyVdLSraW8
— Ryan Reynolds (@VancityReynolds) 17 April 2023
Reynolds’ investment comes just weeks after he sold Mint Mobile to T-Mobile for $1.35 billion, a business he helped grow in part through his marketing efforts. The actor earned an estimated $300 million from the deal with a 25% stake in the business. He previously sold Aviation Gin for $610 million in 2020, although his stake in that company is unknown. Reynolds’ other investments include Welsh football team Wrexham, and his marketing firm Maximum Effort.
Nuvei was founded 20 years ago and is active in around 200 markets. It partners with platforms such as crypto exchange Binance and fantasy sports and betting platform DraftKings to offer payment services to users, and is worth nearly $6 billion, according to Bloomberg.
The company went public in Canada in 2020 and the US in 2021 – just as tech stocks were rising in popularity. Nuvei was also the subject of scrutiny in a report by short-seller Spruce Point Capital Management in late 2021, which urged investors to sell their stake in the company due to allegations of fraud by top executives. Nuvei released a statement in 2021 that these claims were “misleading, false or unrelated to Nuvei’s business.”
“The accusations against Nuvei are malicious and unfounded. I stand behind all of our employees as we continue to execute our strategy with a relentless focus on supporting our customers and making the world a local marketplace,” CEO Phil Fayer wrote.
Earlier this year, Nuvei bought a smaller rival company, Paya, for $1.3 billion in a bid to expand its presence in the US market.
Nuvei did not immediately return Fortuneits request for comment.
Reynolds and his business investments
Reynolds often appeared in short, funny ads promoting his companies. In the case of Mint Mobile, his presence made a significant impact – after Reynolds bought a stake in Mint Mobile in November 2019, downloads of Mint Mobile’s apps increased by 34% in the subsequent 12 months, compared to the previous 12-month period.
“I have a lot of employees whose phone bills I pay, so I decided to give it a try and ended up saving money,” Reynolds shared Fortune in 2021 about how he came to buy Mint Mobile, adding that he also knew the company’s co-founder.
Reynolds bought fifth tier football club Wrexham in 2020 along with actor Rob McElhenney for a total of $2.5 million. The duo also made a behind-the-scenes documentary about owning the club called ‘Welcome To Wrexham’.
In an interview last month following the announcement of Mint Mobile’s sale, Reynolds said CNBC that he, along with Maximum Effort, was always on the lookout for not-so-glamorous, but essential products that they could invest in.
