Ezcorp acquires 40 traditional paw, auto pawn stores in Mexico

EZCORP (EZPW) announced that it has acquired 40 pawn stores across 13 states in Mexico. The stores, operating under the names “Monte Providencia” and “Tu Empeno Efectivo” offer traditional pawn loans, as well as auto pawn transactions, some of which are in stand-alone auto pawn stores. With this acquisition, the Company also takes over the management of 7 additional Monte Providencia stores, which it plans to acquire in the coming months. Lachie Given, Chief Executive Officer, stated: “The Monte Providencia acquisition realizes our strategic objective of geographic expansion, increasing our footprint by 40 stores in Mexico. Mexico continues to be one of our most attractive markets with strong financial performance and robust growth potential. We are excited that these stores also bring diversification of our pawn portfolio with the expansion into auto pawn, a growing segment of the pawn industry in Mexico, that enables higher dollar auto loan transactions and engages a new customer base.”