(Reuters) - Visa Inc (N:V), the world's largest payments network operator, reported a higher-than-expected quarterly profit and announced a $5 billion share buyback program.
The company's cross-border volumes grew 5 percent on a constant dollar basis in the quarter ended June 30. Payments volume rose 10.2 percent to $1.35 trillion, while the number of processed transactions grew 10 percent to 19.8 billion.
"While little has changed in the global economic environment, and cross-border commerce continues to be challenged by a strong U.S. dollar, domestic consumer spend across the globe remains strong and resilient," Chief Executive Charlie Scharf said in a statement.
The company also unveiled a partnership with PayPal Holdings (O:PYPL) intended to make it easier for PayPal customers to use Visa credit cards in their transactions.
However, the company's third-quarter profit was weighed down by costs related to the acquisition of Visa Europe. Visa completed its acquisition of Visa Europe last month in a deal worth as much as $23.3 billion.
Visa's net income fell to $412 million, or 17 cents per Class A share, from $1.69 billion, or 69 cents per Class A share, a year earlier.
Excluding costs related to Visa Europe, the company reported an adjusted profit of 69 cents per share.
Analysts on average were expecting the company to earn 66 cents for the quarter, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.
Total operating revenue rose 3.2 percent to $3.63 billion.