Verrus enables customers to pay for car parking through their mobile phone. The Vancouver-based company was founded in 2000 and moved into the UK five years later. Joint CEOs Desmond Griffin (in Canada) and Robin Bevan (in the UK) will continue to manage the company.

David Newlands, chairman of Hertfordshire-based PayPoint, says the acquisition will broaden the company’s payment services and provide cross-selling opportunities for its existing client base.

In the six months ending September, PayPoint reported a fall in revenue of 12 per cent to £96.4 million, while pre-tax profits were down 10 per cent to £13.8 million.