Credit-card and payments processor First Data Corp. will be purchased by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. in a deal valued at about $29 billion. First Data made the announcment on April 2, marking the latest in a string of leveraged buyouts of established U.S. corporations.

The agreement was approved by First Data's board. First Data shareholders will receive $34 in cash for each share of First Data, representing a premium of about 26% over First Data's closing share price Friday of $26.90. Completion of the deal is subject to the approval of First Data shareholders and other regulatory approvals, and is expected by the end of the third quarter of 2007, First Data said, one reason First Data is attractive to KKR is that processing companies have good cash flow, a key factor private-equity firms want in a business. First Data's operations underpin large parts of the nation's banking system as it processes checks, automated teller-machine, debit cards and credit-card transactions. The company posted revenue of $7.08 billion last year and net income of $1.51 billion. A leveraged b uyout has been long expected, especially after First Data separated its faster-growing Western Union payment-transfer business last year and has struggled to find a CEO to succeed Henry C. Duques.

First Data was split off from American Express Co. in 1992 as a third party transaction processor. The company has struggled in recent years to organize its commercial, retail-processing and international units in a compelling way, amid turmoil in the CEO suite.

Card-processing companies are grappling with a slowdown in growth as Americans are already card heavy and it can be difficult to convince consumers that they need another one.

At the same time, big banks are increasingly handling some of their own card processing as a way to cut costs. In February, First Data said that three of its bank customers, including Wells Fargo & Co., had decided to bring some of their debit-card processing in-house. First Data didn't name the other two banks, but analysts have said those moves would likely jeopardize First Data's goal to increase revenue by 8% in 2008.

It isn't clear if a sale of First Data would affect its 49% stake in Chase Paymentech, which is one of the largest companies that process credit-card transactions on behalf of merchants. J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. owns 51% of Chase Paymentech.