Euronet Worldwide trumps Ant Financial's offer to buy MoneyGram

New York

US electronic-payments company Euronet Worldwide Inc launched a US$1 billion bid for rival MoneyGram International Inc on Tuesday, arguing that its all-American deal would face less regulatory scrutiny than a lower bid by China's Ant Financial Services Group.

Ant Financial, the financial services affiliate of Alibaba Group Holding Ltd, said it remained committed to its deal. It said in a statement: "MoneyGram and Ant Financial continue to work cooperatively under the terms of our merger agreement, and together, we are making progress on schedule towards obtaining all required regulatory and shareholder approvals."