The merchant acquiring market in France has been altered by the formation of a new joint venture (JV) between processor Worldline and Crédit Agricole (CA), the country’s largest bank measured by bank branches. CAWL is the name of the JV, which is 50% plus 1 share owned by Worldline and 50% minus 1 share owned by the bank. Worldline holds five of the nine seats on the CAWL Board of Directors. Separately, Crédit Agricole owns 7% of the equity in Worldline, which is headquartered in Paris. France is the largest payment card market in the European Economic Area with purchase volume excee...