Worldline - 2020 Universal Registration Document

F

RISK ANALYSIS Risk factors

its intellectual property rights, trade secrets and know-how, which is expensive, could cause a diversion of resources and may not prove successful. The loss of intellectual property protection or the inability to obtain third party intellectual property could harm the Group’s business and ability to operate freely.

may challenge,

invalidate,

circumvent,

infringe or

misappropriate the Group’s intellectual property.

In order to mitigate the intellectual property risk, the Group has rolled out a specific intellectual property governance and is providing dedicated resources which are entrusted with the implementation of appropriate policies and processes, and a strong worldwide patent applications filings campaign. This governance is headed by an intellectual property Steering Committee which convenes on a quarterly basis and gathers top management representatives and internal stakeholders and ramifies deeply into operations.

Risk management

The Group relies on a combination of contractual rights and copyright, trademark, patent and trade secret laws to establish and protect the Group’s proprietary technology. Third parties

Commercial acquiring business – chargeback risk F.2.12

In the event of a dispute between a cardholder and a merchant that is not resolved in favor of the merchant, the transaction is

by the Group’s merchants could have a material adverse effect on the Group’s business, financial condition, results of

normally “charged back” to the merchant and the purchase operations or prospects. price is credited or otherwise refunded to the cardholder. In the context of the Group’s commercial acquiring business, if the Group is unable to collect such amounts from the merchant’s account or reserve account (if applicable), or if the merchant refuses or is unable, due to closure, bankruptcy or any other reason, to reimburse the Group for a chargeback, the Group bears the loss for the amount of the refund paid to the cardholder. Additionally, the Group has potential liability for fraudulent electronic payment transactions or credits initiated by merchants or others. Any increase in chargebacks not paid Risk management

In order to mitigate this risk, the Group has put in place policies to manage merchant-related credit risk by establishing reserve accounts, requesting collateral and setting caps for monthly processing insurance coverage are also in place (further details in Section F.1.3 “Insurance” of this Universal Registration Document) to protect against such losses.

Macro-economic changes and country risks F.2.13

The Merchant Services, electronic payments, payment processing, and digital services industries are influenced by

France and the United Kingdom, in particular), could have a material adverse effect on the Group’s business, results of

the overall level of individual consumer, business, and operations and financial condition. government spending, and, with a significant retail and government client base, the Group’s business is particularly dependent on these factors. The Group is exposed to general economic conditions that affect consumer confidence, consumer and government spending, consumer discretionary income or changes in consumer purchasing habits. A renewed deterioration in macro-economic conditions in key countries where the Group operates, particularly in Europe, may adversely affect the Group’s financial performance by reducing the number or average size of transactions made using card and electronic payments. Moreover, during economic downturns, existing and prospective clients may be more reluctant to renew their IT hardware and software. Possible governmental austerity measures or changes in government policies may be imposed and could prompt decreases in government spending, which, given that a significant portion of the Group’s revenue is derived from government clients (in

In the event of a closure of a merchant due to adverse economic conditions, the Group is unlikely to receive its fees for any transactions processed by that merchant in its final months of operation, which would negatively impact the Group’s business, financial condition or results of operations. The Group’s merchant clients and the other participants in the electronic payment system, including payment service providers, are liable for any fines or penalties that may be assessed by the card payment networks. Card payment network standards could require the Group to compensate consumers for services and products purchased but not provided following a merchant’s bankruptcy. In the event that the Group is not able to collect such amounts from payment service providers and other agents, due to fraud, breach of contract, insolvency, bankruptcy or any other reason, the Group may find itself liable for any such charges.

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Universal Registration Document 2020