Lynch-Backed Featurespace in Talks to Be Acquired by Visa: Report (NYSE:V)

The British fraud detection company backed by the late tech tycoon Mike Lynch is in advanced talks to sell it to US payments giant Visa (NYSE:V), Sky News reported on Saturday.

The potential deal could value Cambridge-based Featurespace at more than £700 million, according to the report. he said, citing anonymous sources.

However, the deal has not yet been formalized and could fall apart, the report added.

Lynch, who died when his superyacht Bayesian sank off Sicily, was a non-executive director of the company. His investment firm Invoke Capital has a small stake in Featurespace.

According to the report, Invoke Capital reportedly reduced its stake in recent years to help finance Lynch’s legal battle with Hewlett-Packard over the sale of his Autonomy software company in 2011 for $11 billion.

“There is a high statistical probability that Featurespace would not be the thriving technology company it is without Mike,” the blog post reads.

“Mike’s personal investment in Featurespace enabled the development of an invention that has proven to be fundamental to advancing the field of artificial intelligence,” the company added.

Invoke Capital also backed British cybersecurity firm Darktrace (OTCPK:DRKTF), which is currently in the process of being sold to U.S. private equity firm Thoma Bravo for $4.99 billion.

Since its founding in 2008, Featurespace has raised over $100 million in a series of funding rounds. Notable investors include Merian Chrysalis, Insight Venture Partners, IP Group, and Highland Europe.

The adaptive behavioral analytics software provider’s clients include HSBC, Danske Bank, Vocalink, Worldpay and TSYS.

Visa (V) has said it does not comment on rumors or speculation. Featurespace did not immediately respond to Seeking Alpha’s request for comment.