Visa to buy British payments firm Earthport for £198 million

(Reuters) - Visa Inc is paying 198 million pounds to buy Earthport Plc , a British firm that facilitates international transactions for banks and businesses, the U.S.-based payments group said on Thursday.Visa International Service Association, a unit of Visa, has offered 30 pence for each Earthport share, a price that is four times the stock's Monday closing price of 7.45 pence.Earthport shares surged in early trading on Thursday and matched the offer price.The London-headquartered firm said..