In a time of frenetic payments activity, news arrives of consolidation.

Global Payments Inc. announced today that it will acquire Heartland Payments Systems for approximately $4.3 billion. The acquisition was rumored last week, but confirmed today.

Together, the two payments technology companies will serve some 2.5 million merchants globally. In the U.S. Princeton, N.J.-based Heartland’s main market, it will continue to operate under its own brand. Global Payments operates in 28 countries, as well as the U.S.

“This partnership with Heartland marks a major milestone for our company, significantly enhancing our direct presence in our largest market and transforming Global Payments into the leading provider of integrated payments technology solutions in the world,” said Jeffrey S. Sloan, chief executive officer of Global Payments, based in Atlanta.

The deal size is in the broad vicinity of the $9.1 billion FIS paid this year for SunGard.

The payments space is particularly active now, with EMV-compatible readers for chip cards rolling out across the country just in time for holiday shopping, as well as new mobile payments platforms appearing every week — the most recent was Walmart Pay. The profusion of new technologies means investment in equipment, software and training for merchants, not to mention payment processors, such as Heartland and Global Payments. At the same time, margins remain tight. Consolidation, in other words, should not be particularly surprising.