Global Payments (GPN) 10-K 21 Feb 20 2019 FY Annual report Financial data

Cover Page

Cover Page - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Feb. 19, 2020	Jun. 30, 2019
Cover page.
Entity Central Index Key	0001123360
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2019
Document Fiscal Period Focus	FY
Amendment Flag	false
Document Type	10-K
Document Annual Report	true
Document Period End Date	Dec. 31, 2019
Document Transition Report	false
Entity File Number	001-16111
Entity Registrant Name	GLOBAL PAYMENTS INC
Entity Incorporation, State or Country Code	GA
Entity Tax Identification Number	58-2567903
Entity Address, Address Line One	3550 Lenox Road
Entity Address, City or Town	Atlanta
Entity Address, State or Province	GA
Entity Address, Postal Zip Code	30326
City Area Code	770
Local Phone Number	829-8000
Title of 12(b) Security	Common Stock, No Par Value
Trading Symbol	GPN
Security Exchange Name	NYSE
Entity Well-known Seasoned Issuer	Yes
Entity Voluntary Filers	No
Entity Current Reporting Status	Yes
Entity Interactive Data Current	Yes
Entity Filer Category	Large Accelerated Filer
Entity Small Business	false
Entity Emerging Growth Company	false
Entity Shell Company	false
Entity Public Float			$ 24,916,809,935
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		299,627,279

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF INCO

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF INCOME - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Income Statement [Abstract]
Revenues	$ 4,911,892	$ 3,366,366	$ 3,975,163
Operating expenses:
Cost of service	2,073,803	1,095,014	1,928,037
Selling, general and administrative	2,046,672	1,534,297	1,488,258
Total costs and expenses	4,120,475	2,629,311	3,416,295
Operating income	791,417	737,055	558,868
Interest and other income	31,413	20,719	8,662
Interest and other expense	(304,905)	(195,619)	(174,847)
Total nonoperating income (expense)	(273,492)	(174,900)	(166,185)
Income before income taxes and equity in income of equity method investments	517,925	562,155	392,683
Income tax (expense) benefit	(62,190)	(77,488)	101,387
Income before equity in income of equity method investments	455,735	484,667	494,070
Equity in income of equity method investments, net of tax	13,541	0	0
Net income	469,276	484,667	494,070
Less: Net income attributable to noncontrolling interests	(38,663)	(32,614)	(25,645)
Net income attributable to Global Payments	$ 430,613	$ 452,053	$ 468,425
Earnings per share attributable to Global Payments:
Basic earnings per share (USD per share)	$ 2.17	$ 2.85	$ 3.03
Diluted earnings per share (USD per share)	$ 2.16	$ 2.84	$ 3.01

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF COMP

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Statement of Comprehensive Income [Abstract]
Net income	$ 469,276	$ 484,667	$ 494,070
Other comprehensive income (loss):
Foreign currency translation adjustments	58,369	(118,439)	146,401
Income tax benefit (expense) related to foreign currency translation adjustments	1,281	(832)	0
Net unrealized (losses) gains on hedging activities	(90,238)	(7,553)
Net unrealized (losses) gains on hedging activities	(90,238)	(7,553)	4,549
Reclassification of net unrealized losses (gains) on hedging activities to interest expense	2,257	(4,792)
Reclassification of net unrealized losses (gains) on hedging activities to interest expense			5,673
Income tax benefit (expense) related to hedging activities	21,036	2,972
Income tax benefit (expense) related to hedging activities			(2,583)
Other, net of tax	4,174	760	(660)
Other comprehensive income (loss)	(3,121)	(127,884)	153,380
Comprehensive income	466,155	356,783	647,450
Less: comprehensive income attributable to noncontrolling interests	(35,938)	(29,918)	(39,452)
Comprehensive income attributable to Global Payments	$ 430,217	$ 326,865	$ 607,998

CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS

CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents	$ 1,678,273	$ 1,210,878
Accounts receivable, net	895,232	348,400
Settlement processing assets	1,353,778	1,600,222
Prepaid expenses and other current assets	439,165	216,708
Total current assets	4,366,448	3,376,208
Goodwill	23,759,740	6,341,355
Other intangible assets, net	13,154,655	2,488,618
Property and equipment, net	1,382,802	653,542
Deferred income taxes	6,292	8,128
Other noncurrent assets	1,810,225	362,923
Total assets	44,480,162	13,230,774
Current liabilities:
Settlement lines of credit	463,237	700,486
Current portion of long-term debt	35,137	115,075
Accounts payable and accrued liabilities	1,822,166	1,176,703
Settlement processing obligations	1,258,806	1,276,356
Total current liabilities	3,579,346	3,268,620
Long-term debt	9,090,364	5,015,168
Deferred income taxes	3,145,641	585,025
Other noncurrent liabilities	609,822	175,618
Total liabilities	16,425,173	9,044,431
Commitments and contingencies
Equity:
Preferred stock, no par value; 5,000,000 shares authorized and none issued	0	0
Common stock, no par value; 400,000,000 shares authorized at December 31, 2019 and 200,000,000 shares authorized at December 31, 2018; 300,225,590 shares issued and outstanding at December 31, 2019 and 157,961,982 shares issued and outstanding at December 31, 2018	0	0
Paid-in capital	25,833,307	2,235,167
Retained earnings	2,333,011	2,066,415
Accumulated other comprehensive loss	(310,571)	(310,175)
Total Global Payments shareholders’ equity	27,855,747	3,991,407
Noncontrolling interests	199,242	194,936
Total equity	28,054,989	4,186,343
Total liabilities and equity	$ 44,480,162	$ 13,230,774

CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS (Pa

CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS (Parenthetical) - $ / shares	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Statement of Financial Position [Abstract]
Preferred stock, par value (USD per share)	$ 0	$ 0
Preferred stock authorized (shares)	5,000,000	5,000,000
Preferred stock issued (shares)	0	0
Common stock, par value (USD per share)	$ 0	$ 0
Common stock authorized (shares)	400,000,000	200,000,000
Common stock issued (shares)	300,225,590	157,961,982
Common stock outstanding (shares)	300,225,590	157,961,982

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Cash flows from operating activities:
Net income	$ 469,276	$ 484,667	$ 494,070
Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by operating activities:
Depreciation and amortization of property and equipment	211,200	145,128	113,273
Amortization of acquired intangibles	667,135	377,685	337,878
Amortization of capitalized contract costs	66,086	51,541	45,098
Share-based compensation expense	89,634	57,826	39,095
Provision for operating losses and bad debts	100,188	43,237	48,443
Noncash lease expense	52,612	0	0
Deferred income taxes	(108,309)	(1,451)	(250,670)
Other, net	(570)	(8,025)	44,070
Changes in operating assets and liabilities, net of the effects of business combinations:
Accounts receivable	(115,528)	(33,386)	(14,096)
Settlement processing assets and obligations, net	213,701	83,478	(361,673)
Prepaid expenses and other assets	(159,056)	(160,800)	(129,427)
Accounts payable and other liabilities	(95,091)	66,182	146,327
Net cash provided by operating activities	1,391,278	1,106,082	512,388
Cash flows from investing activities:
Acquisitions, net of cash acquired	(644,622)	(1,259,692)	(562,688)
Capital expenditures	(307,868)	(213,290)	(181,905)
Proceeds from sale-and-leaseback transaction	0	0	37,565
Other, net	35,404	(3,305)	(28,997)
Net cash used in investing activities	(917,086)	(1,476,287)	(736,025)
Cash flows from financing activities:
Net (repayments of) borrowings from settlement lines of credit	(236,473)	70,783	221,532
Proceeds from long-term debt	7,203,903	2,774,214	1,994,324
Repayments of long-term debt	(6,484,689)	(2,304,314)	(1,781,541)
Payments of debt issuance costs	(43,599)	(16,345)	(9,520)
Repurchases of common stock	(311,383)	(208,198)	(34,811)
Proceeds from stock issued under share-based compensation plans	24,514	14,318	10,115
Common stock repurchased - share-based compensation plans	(62,577)	(31,510)	(31,761)
Distributions to noncontrolling interests	(31,632)	(5,686)	(9,301)
Preacquisition dividends paid to former TSYS shareholders	(23,240)	0	0
Dividends paid	(63,498)	(6,332)	(6,732)
Net cash (used in) provided by financing activities	(28,674)	286,930	352,305
Effect of exchange rate changes on cash	21,877	(41,702)	44,408
Increase (decrease) in cash and cash equivalents	467,395	(124,977)	173,076
Cash and cash equivalents, beginning of the period	1,210,878	1,335,855	1,162,779
Cash and cash equivalents, end of the period	$ 1,678,273	$ 1,210,878	$ 1,335,855

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CHAN

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CHANGES IN EQUITY - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Total	Total Global Payments Shareholders’ Equity	Number of Shares	Paid-in Capital	Retained Earnings	Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss	Noncontrolling Interests
Balance at beginning of period (shares) at Dec. 31, 2016			152,186,000
Balance at beginning of period at Dec. 31, 2016	$ 2,779,342	$ 2,630,791		$ 1,816,278	$ 1,137,230	$ (322,717)	$ 148,551
Increase (Decrease) in Stockholders' Equity [Roll Forward]
Net income	494,070	468,425			468,425		25,645
Other comprehensive (loss) income	153,380	139,573				139,573	13,807
Stock issued under share-based compensation plans (shares)			1,350,000
Stock issued under share-based compensation plans	10,115	10,115		10,115
Common stock repurchased - share-based compensation plans (shares)			(338,000)
Common stock repurchased - share-based compensation plans	(32,006)	(32,006)		(32,006)
Share-based compensation expense	39,095	39,095		39,095
Issuance of common stock in connection with a business combination (shares)			6,358,000
Issuance of common stock in connection with a business combination	572,079	572,079		572,079
Dissolution of a subsidiary	0	7,998			7,998		(7,998)
Distributions to noncontrolling interests	$ (9,301)						(9,301)
Repurchase of common stock (shares)	(376,000)		(376,000)
Repurchases of common stock	$ (34,811)	(34,811)		(25,787)	(9,024)
Dividends paid	(6,732)	(6,732)			(6,732)
Balance at end of period (shares) at Dec. 31, 2017			159,180,000
Balance at end of period at Dec. 31, 2017	3,965,231	3,794,527		2,379,774	1,597,897	(183,144)	170,704
Increase (Decrease) in Stockholders' Equity [Roll Forward]
Net income	484,667	452,053			452,053		32,614
Other comprehensive (loss) income	(127,884)	(125,188)				(125,188)	(2,696)
Stock issued under share-based compensation plans (shares)			988,000
Stock issued under share-based compensation plans	14,318	14,318		14,318
Common stock repurchased - share-based compensation plans (shares)			(279,000)
Common stock repurchased - share-based compensation plans	(32,727)	(32,727)		(32,727)
Share-based compensation expense	57,826	57,826		57,826
Distributions to noncontrolling interests	$ (5,686)						(5,686)
Repurchase of common stock (shares)	(1,927,000)		(1,927,000)
Repurchases of common stock	$ (212,196)	(212,196)		(184,024)	(28,172)
Dividends paid	(6,332)	(6,332)			(6,332)
Balance at end of period (shares) at Dec. 31, 2018			157,962,000
Balance at end of period at Dec. 31, 2018	4,186,343	3,991,407		2,235,167	2,066,415	(310,175)	194,936
Increase (Decrease) in Stockholders' Equity [Roll Forward]
Net income	469,276	430,613			430,613		38,663
Other comprehensive (loss) income	(3,121)	(396)				(396)	(2,725)
Stock issued under share-based compensation plans (shares)			991,000
Stock issued under share-based compensation plans	24,514	24,514		24,514
Common stock repurchased - share-based compensation plans (shares)			(308,000)
Common stock repurchased - share-based compensation plans	(63,333)	(63,333)		(63,333)
Share-based compensation expense	89,634	89,634		89,634
Issuance of common stock in connection with a business combination (shares)			143,909,000
Issuance of common stock in connection with a business combination	23,771,389	23,771,389		23,771,389
Distributions to noncontrolling interests	$ (31,632)						(31,632)
Repurchase of common stock (shares)	(2,328,000)		(2,328,000)
Repurchases of common stock	$ (324,583)	(324,583)		(224,064)	(100,519)
Dividends paid	(63,498)	(63,498)			(63,498)
Balance at end of period (shares) at Dec. 31, 2019			300,226,000
Balance at end of period at Dec. 31, 2019	$ 28,054,989	$ 27,855,747		$ 25,833,307	$ 2,333,011	$ (310,571)	$ 199,242

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CH_2

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CHANGES IN EQUITY (Parenthetical) - $ / shares	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Statement of Stockholders' Equity [Abstract]
Dividends paid (USD per share)	$ 0.225	$ 0.04	$ 0.04

BASIS OF PRESENTATION AND SUMMA

BASIS OF PRESENTATION AND SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Accounting Policies [Abstract]
BASIS OF PRESENTATION AND SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES	BASIS OF PRESENTATION AND SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES Business, consolidation and presentation — We are a leading pure play payments technology company delivering innovative software and services to our customers globally. Our technologies, services and employee expertise enable us to provide a broad range of solutions that allow our customers to operate their businesses more efficiently across a variety of channels around the world. We operate in three reportable segments: Merchant Solutions, Issuer Solutions and Business and Consumer Solutions, which are described in "Note 15 —Segment Information." Global Payments Inc. and its consolidated subsidiaries are referred to collectively as "Global Payments," the "Company," "we," "our" or "us," unless the context requires otherwise. On September 18, 2019 , we consummated our merger with Total System Services, Inc. ("TSYS") (the "Merger") for total purchase consideration of $24.5 billion , primarily funded with shares of our common stock. Prior to the Merger, TSYS was a leading global payments provider, offering seamless, secure and innovative solutions to issuers, merchants and consumers. See "Note 2 —Acquisitions" for further discussion of the Merger and other acquisitions. These consolidated financial statements include our accounts and those of our majority-owned subsidiaries and all intercompany balances and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation. Investments in entities that we do not control are accounted for using the equity or cost method, depending upon our ability to exercise significant influence over operating and financial policies. These consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States ("GAAP"). Use of estimates — The preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make certain estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosures of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements, as well as the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reported period. Actual results could differ materially from those estimates. Recently adopted accounting pronouncements — The Financial Accounting Standards Board ("FASB") issued Accounting Standards Update ("ASU") 2016-02, "Leases", which requires recognition of assets and liabilities for the rights and obligations created by leases and new disclosures about leases. We adopted ASU 2016-02, as well as other related clarifications and interpretive guidance issued by the FASB, on January 1, 2019 using the modified retrospective transition method. Under this transition method, we did not recast the prior period financial statements presented. We elected the transition package of three practical expedients, which among other things, allowed for the carryforward of historical lease classifications. We made an accounting policy election to not recognize assets or liabilities for leases with a term of less than 12 months and to account for all components in a lease arrangement as a single combined lease component for all of our then existing asset classes. In connection with the Merger, we acquired right-of-use assets that represent an additional asset class for computer equipment, for which we account for lease and nonlease components separately. The adoption of ASU 2016-02 resulted in the measurement and recognition of lease liabilities in the amount of $274.0 million and right-of-use assets in the amount of $236.0 million as of January 1, 2019. Lease liabilities were measured as the present value of remaining lease payments, and the corresponding right-of-use assets were measured at an amount equal to the lease liabilities adjusted by the amounts of certain assets and liabilities, such as prepaid rent and deferred lease obligations, that we previously recognized on the balance sheet prior to the initial application of ASU 2016-02. To calculate the present value of remaining lease payments, we elected to use an incremental borrowing rate based on the remaining lease term at transition. We adopted ASU 2014-09, "Revenues from Contracts with Customers (Topic 606)" as well as other clarifications and technical guidance issued by the FASB related to this new revenue standard ("ASC 606") and ASC Subtopic 340-40: "Other Assets and Deferred Costs - Contracts with Customers" ("ASC 340-40") on January 1, 2018. We elected the modified retrospective transition method, which resulted in a net increase to retained earnings of $51.0 million for the cumulative effect of applying the standard. The primary components of the cumulative-effect adjustment were changes in the accounting for certain costs to obtain customer contracts and the related income tax effects, which resulted in increases to other noncurrent assets and deferred income tax liabilities of $64.6 million and $15.6 million , respectively. Previously, we amortized these assets to expense over the related contract term. Under ASC 340-40, we now amortize these assets over the expected period of benefit, which is generally longer than the initial contract term. Under the new standard, we also capitalized certain costs that were not previously capitalized, including certain commissions and the related payroll taxes and certain costs incurred to fulfill a contract before the performance obligation has been satisfied, primarily compensation and related payroll taxes for employees engaged in customer implementation activities in our technology-enabled businesses. Prior to the adoption of ASC 606, we presented payments made to certain third parties, including payment networks, as a component of operating expenses. For periods beginning on and after January 1, 2018 , we present revenue net of these third-party payments. This change in presentation had the effect of reducing our revenues and operating expenses by the same amounts. As a result, revenues, cost of service and selling, general and administrative expenses were lower than the amounts that would have been presented if not for the effect of the new revenue accounting standard by $1,110.8 million , $1,042.9 million and $67.9 million , respectively, for the year ended December 31, 2018. The adoption of ASC 606 did not have a material effect on any other line items in our consolidated statement of income for year ended December 31, 2018 or on any other line items in our consolidated balance sheet as of December 31, 2018 and had no effect on our cash flows from operating activities, investing activities or financing activities included in our consolidated statement of cash flows for the year ended December 31, 2018. Revenue recognition — Pursuant to ASC 606, at contract inception, we assess the goods and services promised in our contracts with customers and identify a performance obligation for each promise to transfer to the customer a good or service that is distinct. In accordance with ASC 606, we recognize revenue when a customer obtains control of promised services. The amount of revenue recognized reflects the consideration to which we expect to be entitled to receive in exchange for these services. Merchant Solutions. Our customers in the Merchant Solutions segment contract with us for payment services, which we provide in exchange for consideration for completed transactions. Our payment solutions are similar around the world in that we enable our customers to accept card, electronic, check and digital-based payments. Our comprehensive offerings include, but are not limited to, authorization services, settlement and funding services, customer support and help-desk functions, chargeback resolution, payment security services, consolidated billing and statements and on-line reporting. In addition, we may sell or rent point-of-sale terminals or other equipment to customers. For our payment services obligation, the nature of our promise to the customer is that we stand ready to process transactions the customer requests on a daily basis over the contract term. Since the timing and quantity of transactions to be processed by us is not determinable, we view payment services to comprise an obligation to stand ready to process as many transactions as the customer requests. Under a stand-ready obligation, the evaluation of the nature of our performance obligation is focused on each time increment rather than the underlying activities. Therefore, we view payment services to comprise a series of distinct days of service that are substantially the same and have the same pattern of transfer to the customer. Accordingly, the promise to stand ready is accounted for as a single-series performance obligation. In order to provide our payment services, we route and clear each transaction through the applicable payment network. We obtain authorization for the transaction and request funds settlement from the card issuing financial institution through the payment network. When third parties are involved in the transfer of goods or services to our customer, we consider the nature of each specific promised good or service and apply judgment to determine whether we control the good or service before it is transferred to the customer or whether we are acting as an agent of the third party. To determine whether or not we control the good or service before it is transferred to the customer, we assess indicators including which party is primarily responsible for fulfillment and has discretion in determining pricing for the good or service, as well as other considerations. Based on our assessment of these indicators, we have concluded that our promise to our customer to provide our payment services is distinct from the services provided by the card issuing financial institutions and payment networks in connection with payment transactions. We do not have the ability to direct the use of and obtain substantially all of the benefits of the services provided by the card issuing financial institutions and payment networks before those services are transferred to our customer, and on that basis, we do not control those services prior to being transferred to our customer. As a result, upon adoption of ASC 606, we present our revenues net of the interchange fees retained by the card issuing financial institutions and the fees charged by the payment networks. The majority of our payment services are priced as a percentage of transaction value or a specified fee per transaction, depending on the card type. We also charge other per occurrence fees based on specific services that may be unrelated to the number of transactions or transaction value. Given the nature of the promise and the underlying fees based on unknown quantities or outcomes of services to be performed over the contract term, the total consideration is determined to be variable consideration. The variable consideration for our payment service is usage-based and, therefore, it specifically relates to our efforts to satisfy our payment services obligation. The variability is satisfied each day the service is provided to the customer. We directly ascribe variable fees to the distinct day of service to which it relates, and we consider the services performed each day in order to ascribe the appropriate amount of total fees to that day. Therefore, we measure revenues for our payment service on a daily basis based on the services that are performed on that day. Certain of our technology-enabled customer arrangements contain multiple promises, such as payment services, perpetual software licenses, software-as-a-service ("SaaS"), maintenance, installation services, training and equipment, each of which is evaluated to determine whether it represents a separate performance obligation. SaaS arrangements are generally offered on a subscription basis, providing the customers with access to the SaaS platform along with general support and maintenance services. Because these promised services within our SaaS arrangements are delivered concurrently over the contract term, we account for these promises as if they are a single performance obligation that includes a series of distinct services with the same pattern of transfer to the customer. In addition, certain installation services are not considered distinct from the SaaS and are recognized over the expected period of benefit. Once we determine the performance obligations and the transaction price, including an estimate of any variable consideration, we then allocate the transaction price to each performance obligation in the contract using a relative standalone selling price method. We determine standalone selling price based on the price at which the good or service is sold separately. If the standalone selling price is not observable through past transactions, we estimate the standalone selling price by considering all reasonably available information, including market conditions, trends or other company- or customer-specific factors. Substantially all of the performance obligations described above are satisfied over time. The performance obligations associated with equipment sales, perpetual software licenses and certain professional services are generally satisfied at a point in time when they are transferred to the customer. For certain other professional services that represent separate performance obligations, we generally use the input method and recognize revenue based on the number of hours incurred or services performed to date in relation to the total services expected to be required to satisfy the performance obligation. We satisfy the combined SaaS performance obligation by standing ready to provide access to the SaaS. Consideration for SaaS arrangements may consist of fixed or usage-based fees. Revenue is recognized over the period for which the services are provided or by directly ascribing any variable fees to the distinct day of service based on the services that are performed on that day. Issuer Solutions. Issuer Solutions segment revenues are derived from long-term contracts with financial institutions and other financial service providers. Issuer Solutions customer contracts may include multiple promises. Payment processing services revenues are generated primarily from charges based on the number of accounts on file, transactions and authorizations processed, statements generated and/or mailed, managed services, cards embossed and mailed, and other processing services for cardholders accounts on file. Most of these contracts have prescribed annual minimums, penalties for early termination, and service level agreements that may affect contractual fees if specific service levels are not achieved. Issuer Solutions revenues also include loyalty redemption services and professional services. To the extent a contract includes multiple promised services, we must apply judgment to determine whether promised services are capable of being distinct and are distinct in the context of the contract. If these criteria are not met, the promised services are combined and accounted for as a single performance obligation. Issuer Solutions customer contracts typically include an obligation to provide processing services to financial institutions and other financial services providers. We have determined that these processing services represent a stand-ready obligation comprising a series of distinct days of services that are substantially the same and have the same pattern of transfer to the customer. In many cases, Issuer Solutions arrangements may include additional performance obligations relating to loyalty redemption services and other professional services. Similar to processing services, we have determined that loyalty redemption services represent a stand-ready obligation comprising a series of distinct days of service that are substantially the same and have the same pattern of transfer to the customer. The performance obligations to provide processing services and loyalty redemption services include variable consideration. With respect to these performance obligations, we have determined that (a) the variable consideration relates specifically to our efforts to satisfy the performance obligation and (b) allocating the variable amount of consideration entirely to the performance obligation is consistent with the allocation objective when considering all of the performance obligations and payment terms in the contract. As a result, we allocate and recognize variable consideration in the period in which we have the contractual right to invoice the customer. Professional services representing performance obligations are satisfied over time. For professional services, we recognize revenue based on the labor hours incurred for time and materials projects or on a straight-line basis for fixed-fee projects. In some cases, we pay certain of our customers a signing incentive at contract inception or renewal. Consideration paid to customers is accounted for as a reduction of the transaction price and recognized as a reduction in revenues as the related services are transferred to the customer over the contract term. The deferred portion of consideration paid to customers is classified within other assets in our consolidated balance sheets. Business and Consumer Solutions. Business and Consumer Solutions segment revenues principally consist of fees collected from cardholders and fees generated by cardholder activity in connection with the programs that we manage. Customers are typically charged a fee for each purchase transaction made using their cards, unless the customer is on a monthly or annual service plan, in which case the customer is instead charged a monthly or annual subscription fee, as applicable. Customers are also charged a monthly maintenance fee after a specified period of inactivity. We also charge fees associated with additional services offered in connection with our accounts, including the use of overdraft features, a variety of bill payment options, card replacement, foreign exchange and card-to-card transfers of funds initiated through our call centers. Business and Consumer Solutions revenues include a stand-ready performance obligation to provide account access and facilitate purchase transactions. We have determined that we have a right to consideration from a customer in an amount that corresponds directly with the value to the customer of our performance completed to date. As a result, we recognize revenue in the amount to which we have a right to invoice. Revenues are recognized net of fees charged by the payment networks for services they provide in processing transactions routed through them. Revenue recognition prior to ASC 606. For periods prior to our adoption of ASC 606, we recognized revenue when services were performed. For arrangements with multiple elements, such as equipment, perpetual licenses, SaaS, maintenance, installation and training, we allocated consideration to each element based on the relative-selling-price method. In multiple element arrangements where more-than-incidental software elements were included, the entire amount of revenue under the arrangement was deferred until all elements were delivered or objective evidence of the fair value of the undelivered items was established. Cash and cash equivalents — Cash and cash equivalents include cash on hand and all liquid investments with a maturity of three months or less when purchased. We consider certain portions of our cash and cash equivalents to be unrestricted but not available for general purposes. The amount of cash that we consider to be available for general purposes does not include the following: (i) settlement-related cash balances, (ii) funds held as collateral for merchant losses ("Merchant Reserves") and (iii) funds held for customers. Settlement-related cash balances represent funds that we hold when the incoming amount from the card networks precedes the funding obligation to the merchant. Settlement-related cash balances are not restricted; however, these funds are generally paid out in satisfaction of settlement processing obligations the following day. Merchant Reserves serve as collateral to minimize contingent liabilities associated with any losses that may occur under the merchant agreement. We record a corresponding liability in settlement processing assets and settlement processing obligations in our consolidated balance sheet. While this cash is not restricted in its use, we believe that designating this cash as Merchant Reserves strengthens our fiduciary standing with financial institutions that sponsor us and is in accordance with guidelines set by the card networks. Funds held for customers and the corresponding liability that we record in "customer deposits" include amounts collected prior to remittance on our customers' behalf. Accounts receivable, contract assets and contract liabilities — A contract with a customer creates legal rights and obligations. As we perform under customer contracts, our right to consideration that is unconditional is considered to be accounts receivable. If our right to consideration for such performance is contingent upon a future event or satisfaction of additional performance obligations, the amount of revenues we have recognized in excess of the amount we have billed to the customer is recognized as a contract asset. Contract liabilities represent consideration received from customers in excess of revenues recognized. Contract assets and liabilities are presented net at the individual contract level in the consolidated balance sheet and are classified as current or noncurrent based on the nature of the underlying contractual rights and obligations. Allowance for doubtful accounts — Accounts receivable balances are stated net of an allowance for doubtful accounts and billing adjustments. We record an allowance for doubtful accounts when it is probable that the accounts receivable balance will not be collected. Increases in the allowance for doubtful accounts are recorded as charges to bad debt expense and are reflected in selling, general and administrative expenses in our consolidated statements of income. Write-offs of uncollectible accounts are charged against the allowance for doubtful accounts. We record an allowance for billing adjustments for actual and potential billing discrepancies. Increases in the allowance for billing adjustments are recorded as a reduction of revenues in our consolidated statements of income and actual adjustments to invoices are charged against the allowance for billing adjustments. Contract costs — Upon adoption of ASC 340-40, we capitalize costs to obtain contracts with customers, including employee sales commissions and fees to business partners. At contract inception, we capitalize such costs that we expect to recover and that would not have been incurred if the contract had not been obtained. In certain cases where costs related to obtaining customers are incurred after the inception of the customer contract, such costs are capitalized as the corresponding liability is recognized. We also capitalize certain costs incurred to fulfill our contracts with customers that (i) relate directly to the contract, (ii) are expected to generate resources that will be used to satisfy our performance obligation under the contract and (iii) are expected to be recovered through revenues generated under the contract. Capitalized costs to obtain and to fulfill contracts are included in other noncurrent assets. Contract costs are amortized to operating expense in our consolidated statements of income on a systematic basis consistent with the transfer to the customer of the goods or services to which the asset relates. Amortization of capitalized costs to obtain customer contracts is included in selling, general and administrative expenses, while amortization of capitalized costs to fulfill customer contracts is included in cost of services. We utilize a straight-line or proportional amortization method depending upon which method best depicts the pattern of transfer of the goods or services to the customer. We amortize these assets over the expected period of benefit, which, based on the factors noted above, is typically three to seven years. In order to determine the appropriate amortization period for capitalized contract costs, we consider a combination of factors, including customer attrition rates, estimated terms of customer relationships, the useful lives of technology we use to provide goods and services to our customers, whether future contract renewals are expected and if there is any incremental commission to be paid associated with a contract renewal. Costs to obtain a contract with an expected period of benefit of one year or less are recognized as an expense when incurred. We evaluate contract costs for impairment by comparing, on a pooled basis, the expected future net cash flows from underlying customer relationships to the carrying amount of the capitalized contract costs. Prior to our adoption of ASC 606, we capitalized certain customer acquisition costs that represented incremental, direct costs that were recoverable through merchant profitability. The capitalized customer acquisition costs were amortized using a proportional method over the initial term of the related merchant contract. The deferred customer acquisition cost asset was accrued over the first year of merchant processing, consistent with the build-up in the accrued buyout liability, as described below. Up-front distributor and partner payments — We make up-front contractual payments to third-party distributors and partners that do not meet the criteria of a contract cost. If the payments meet the criteria to be recognized as an asset, we capitalize the up-front payment and recognize the capitalized amount as expense ratably over the period of benefit, which is generally the contract period. If the contract requires the distributor or partner to perform specific acts and no other conditions exist for the distributor or partner to earn or retain the up-front payment, then we recognize the capitalized amount as an expense when the performance conditions have been met. Up-front distributor and partner payments are classified on our consolidated balance sheet within prepaid expenses and other current assets and other noncurrent assets and the related expense is recorded within selling, general and administrative expenses in our consolidated statements of income. Settlement processing assets and obligations — Funds settlement refers to the process of transferring funds for sales and credits between card issuers and merchants and relates to certain transactions processed in our Merchant Solutions segment. For transactions processed on our systems, we use our internal network to provide funding instructions to financial institutions that in turn fund the merchants. We process funds settlement under two models, a sponsorship model and a direct membership model. Under the sponsorship model, we are designated as an independent sales organization by Mastercard and Visa, which means that member clearing banks ("Member") sponsor us and require our adherence to the standards of the payment networks. In certain markets, we have sponsorship or depository and clearing agreements with financial institution sponsors. These agreements allow us to route transactions under the Members' control and identification numbers to clear credit card transactions through Mastercard and Visa. In this model, the standards of the payment networks restrict us from performing funds settlement or accessing merchant settlement funds, and, instead, require that these funds be in the possession of the Member until the merchant is funded. Under the direct membership model, we are members in various payment networks, allowing us to process and fund transactions without third-party sponsorship. In this model, we route and clear transactions directly through the card brand’s network and are not restricted from performing funds settlement. Otherwise, we process these transactions similarly to how we process transactions in the sponsorship model. We are required to adhere to the standards of the payment networks in which we are direct members. We maintain relationships with financial institutions, which may also serve as our Member sponsors for other card brands or in other markets, to assist with funds settlement. Timing differences, interchange fees, merchant reserves and exception items cause differences between the amount received from the payment networks and the amount funded to the merchants. These intermediary balances arising in our settlement process are reflected as settlement processing assets and obligations on our consolidated balance sheets. Settlement processing assets and obligations include the following components: • Interchange reimbursement . Our receivable from merchants for the portion of the discount fee related to reimbursement of the interchange fee. • Receivable from Members. Our receivable from the Members for transactions in which we have advanced funding to the Members to fund merchants in advance of receipt of funding from networks. • Receivable from networks . Our receivable from a payment network for transactions processed on behalf of merchants where we are a direct member of that particular network. • Exception items . Items such as customer chargeback amounts received from merchants. • Merchant Reserves . Reserves held to minimize contingent liabilities associated with losses that may occur under the merchant agreement. • Liability to Members . Our liability to the Members for transactions for which funding from the payment network has been received by the Members but merchants have not yet been funded. • Liability to merchants . Our liability to merchants for transactions that have been processed but not yet funded where we are a direct member of a particular payment network. • Reserve for merchant losses and sales allowances . Our reserve for allowances, charges or losses that we do not expect to collect from the merchants due to concessions, merchant fraud, insolvency, bankruptcy or any other merchant-related reason. We apply offsetting to our settlement processing assets and obligations where a right of setoff exists. In the sponsorship model, we apply offsetting by Member agreement because the Member is ultimately responsible for funds settlement. With these Member transactions, we do not have access to the gross proceeds of the receivable from the payment networks and, thus, do not have a direct obligation or any ability to satisfy the payable to fund the merchant. In these situations, we apply offsetting to determine a net position for each Member agreement. If that net position is an asset, we reflect the net amount in settlement processing assets on our consolidated balance sheet. If that net position is a liability, we reflect the net amount in settlement processing obligations on our consolidated balance sheet. In the direct membership model, offsetting is not applied, and the individual components are presented as an asset or obligation based on the nature of that component. Reserve for merchant losses and sales allowances — Our merchant customers are liable for any charges or losses that occur under the merchant agreement. We experience losses in our card processing services when we are unable to collect amounts from merchant customers for any charges properly reversed by the card issuing financial institutions. When we are not able to collect these amounts from the merchants due to merchant fraud, insolvency, bankruptcy or any other reason, we may be liable for the reversed charges. We require cash deposits, guarantees, letters of credit and other types of collateral from certain merchants to minimize any such contingent liability, and we also utilize a number of systems and procedures to manage merchant risk. We record an estimated liability for merchant losses comprised of estimated known losses and estimated incurred but not reported losses, which is included in settlement processing obligations in our consolidated balance sheet. The provision for merchant losses is included as a component of cost of service and the sales allowance provision is included as a reduction of revenue in our consolidated statements of income.. Reserve for check guarantee operating losses — We experience check guarantee losses when we are unable to collect the full amount of a guaranteed check from the checkwriter. In our check guarantee service offering, we charge our merchants a percentage of the gross amo

ACQUISITIONS

ACQUISITIONS	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Business Combinations [Abstract]
ACQUISITIONS	ACQUISITIONS The transactions described below were accounted for as business combinations, which generally requires that we record the assets acquired and liabilities assumed at fair value as of the acquisition date. Total System Services, Inc. On September 18, 2019 , we acquired all of the outstanding common stock of TSYS. Prior to the Merger, TSYS was a leading global payments provider, offering seamless, secure and innovative solutions to issuers, merchants and consumers. Holders of TSYS common stock received 0.8101 shares of Global Payments common stock for each share of TSYS common stock they owned at the effective time of the Merger (the "Exchange Ratio"). In addition, certain TSYS equity awards held by employees who were not executive officers, pursuant to their terms, vested automatically at closing ("Single-Trigger Awards") and were converted into the right to receive a number of shares of Global Payments common stock determined based on the Exchange Ratio. Also, pursuant to the Merger Agreement, we granted equity awards for approximately 2.2 million shares of Global Payments common stock to certain TSYS equity awards holders ("Replacement Awards"). Each such Replacement Award is subject to the same terms and conditions (including vesting and exercisability or payment terms) as applied to the corresponding TSYS equity award. We apportioned the fair value of the Replacement Awards between purchase consideration and amounts to be recognized in periods following the Merger as share-based compensation expense over the requisite service period of the Replacement Awards. The purchase consideration transferred to TSYS shareholders was valued at $23.8 billion . Total purchase consideration also included the amount of borrowings outstanding under TSYS' unsecured revolving credit facility together with accrued interest and fees that we were required to repay upon consummation of the Merger. The fair value of total purchase consideration was determined as follows (in thousands, except per share data): Shares of TSYS common stock issued and outstanding (including Single-Trigger Awards) 177,643 Exchange Ratio 0.8101 Shares of Global Payments common stock issued to TSYS shareholders 143,909 Price per share of Global Payments common stock $ 163.74 Fair value of common stock issued to TSYS shareholders (1) 23,563,568 Value of Replacement Awards attributable to purchase consideration 207,821 Cash paid to TSYS shareholders in lieu of fractional shares 1,352 Total purchase consideration transferred to TSYS shareholders 23,772,741 Repayment of TSYS' unsecured revolving credit facility (including accrued interest and fees) 702,212 Total purchase consideration $ 24,474,953 (1) Fair value of common stock issued to TSYS shareholders does not equal the product of shares of Global Payments common stock issued to TSYS shareholders and price per share of Global Payments common stock as presented in the table above due to the rounding of the number of shares in thousands. The provisional estimated acquisition-date fair values of major classes of assets acquired and liabilities assumed as of December 31, 2019 , including a reconciliation to the total purchase consideration, were as follows (in thousands): Provisional Amounts at Acquisition Date Measurement- Period Adjustments Provisional Amounts at December 31, 2019 (in thousands) Cash and cash equivalents $ 446,027 $ (18 ) $ 446,009 Accounts receivable 443,783 (935 ) 442,848 Identified intangible assets 11,020,000 (40,000 ) 10,980,000 Property and equipment 695,560 (51,476 ) 644,084 Other assets 1,476,290 (1,465 ) 1,474,825 Accounts payable and accrued liabilities (594,558 ) (19,502 ) (614,060 ) Debt (3,295,284 ) (58 ) (3,295,342 ) Deferred income tax liabilities (2,843,643 ) 155,794 (2,687,849 ) Other liabilities (313,782 ) (633 ) (314,415 ) Total identifiable net assets 7,034,393 41,707 7,076,100 Goodwill 17,440,560 (41,707 ) 17,398,853 Total purchase consideration $ 24,474,953 $ — $ 24,474,953 As of December 31, 2019 , we considered these amounts to be provisional because we were still in the process of gathering and reviewing information to support the valuations of the assets acquired and liabilities assumed. We made measurement-period adjustments, as shown in the table above, that decreased the amount of provisional goodwill by $41.7 million . The effects of the measurement-period adjustments on our consolidated statement of income for the fourth quarter of 2019 were not material. As of December 31, 2019 , provisional goodwill arising from the acquisition of $17.4 billion was included in our reportable segments as follows: $7.1 billion in the Merchant Solutions segment, $7.9 billion in the Issuer Solutions segment and $2.4 billion in the Business and Consumer Solutions segment. Goodwill was attributable to expected growth opportunities, an assembled workforce and potential synergies from combining the acquired business into our existing business. We expect that substantially all of the goodwill from this acquisition will not be deductible for income tax purposes. The following table reflects the provisional estimated fair values of the identified intangible assets of TSYS and the respective weighted-average estimated amortization periods: Estimated Fair Values Weighted-Average Estimated Amortization Periods (in thousands) (years) Customer-related intangible assets $ 6,420,000 15 Contract-based intangible assets 1,800,000 18 Acquired technologies 1,810,000 7 Trademarks and trade names 950,000 11 Total estimated identified intangible assets $ 10,980,000 13 From the acquisition date through December 31, 2019 , the acquired operations of TSYS contributed $1,215.0 million to our consolidated revenues and $78.7 million to operating income. Transaction costs directly related to the Merger were $68.9 million for the year ended December 31, 2019 , respectively. The following unaudited pro forma information shows the results of our operations for the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018 as if the Merger had occurred on January 1, 2018. The unaudited pro forma information is presented for informational purposes only and is not necessarily indicative of what would have occurred if the Merger had occurred as of that date. The unaudited pro forma information is also not intended to be a projection of future results due to the integration of the acquired operations of TSYS. The unaudited pro forma information reflects the effects of applying our accounting policies and certain pro forma adjustments to the combined historical financial information of Global Payments and TSYS. The pro forma adjustments include: • incremental amortization expense associated with identified intangible assets; • a reduction of revenues and operating expenses associated with fair value adjustments made to acquired assets and assumed liabilities, such as contract cost assets and contract liabilities; • a reduction of interest expense resulting from financing of the Merger, the repayment of TSYS' secured revolving credit facility and fair value adjustments applied to TSYS debt that we assumed; and • the income tax effects of the pro forma adjustments. In addition, the pro forma net income attributable to Global Payments includes recognition of transaction costs related to the Merger in earnings as of the beginning of the earliest period presented. Accordingly, pro forma net income attributable to Global Payments for the year ended December 31, 2018 includes approximately $150 million of transaction costs. Year Ended December 31, 2019 Year Ended December 31, 2018 Actual Pro Forma Actual Pro Forma (in thousands) Total revenues $ 4,911,892 $ 7,854,282 $ 3,366,366 $ 7,359,631 Net income attributable to Global Payments $ 430,613 $ 711,658 $ 452,053 $ 510,795 SICOM Systems, Inc. On October 17, 2018, we acquired SICOM Systems, Inc. ("SICOM") for total purchase consideration of $410.2 million , which we funded with cash on hand and incremental debt. SICOM is a provider of end-to-end enterprise, cloud-based software solutions and other technologies to quick service restaurants and food service management companies. Prior to the acquisition, SICOM was indirectly owned by a private equity investment firm where one of our board members was a partner and investor. His direct interest in the transaction was approximately $1.1 million , the amount distributed to him based on his investment interest in the fund of the private equity firm that sold SICOM to us. Based on consideration of all relevant information, the audit committee of our board of directors recommended that the board approve the acquisition of SICOM, which it did. The estimated acquisition-date fair values of major classes of assets acquired and liabilities assumed, including a reconciliation to the total purchase consideration, were as follows: Provisional Amounts at December 31, 2018 Measurement- Period Adjustments Final (in thousands) Cash and cash equivalents $ 7,540 $ — $ 7,540 Property and equipment 5,943 (105 ) 5,838 Identified intangible assets 188,294 — 188,294 Other assets 22,278 (3 ) 22,275 Deferred income tax liabilities (48,448 ) 838 (47,610 ) Other liabilities (31,250 ) (100 ) (31,350 ) Total identifiable net assets 144,357 630 144,987 Goodwill 264,844 370 265,214 Total purchase consideration $ 409,201 $ 1,000 $ 410,201 Goodwill arising from the acquisition of $265.2 million , included in the Merchant Solutions segment, was attributable to expected growth opportunities, an assembled workforce and potential synergies from combining the acquired business into our existing business. We expect that approximately $40.0 million of the goodwill from this acquisition will be deductible for income tax purposes. The following table reflects the estimated fair values of the identified intangible assets of SICOM and the respective weighted-average estimated amortization periods: Estimated Fair Values Weighted-Average Estimated Amortization Periods (in thousands) (years) Customer-related intangible assets $ 104,900 14 Acquired technologies 65,312 6 Trademarks and trade names 11,202 5 Contract-based intangible assets 6,880 5 Total estimated acquired intangible assets $ 188,294 10 AdvancedMD On September 4, 2018, we acquired AdvancedMD, Inc. ("AdvancedMD") for total purchase consideration of $706.9 million , which we funded with cash on hand and incremental debt. AdvancedMD is a provider of cloud-based enterprise software solutions to small-to-medium sized ambulatory-care physician practices. The estimated acquisition-date fair values of major classes of assets acquired and liabilities assumed, including a reconciliation to the total purchase consideration, were as follows: Provisional Amounts at December 31, 2018 Measurement- Period Adjustments Final (in thousands) Cash and cash equivalents $ 7,657 $ — $ 7,657 Property and equipment 5,672 — 5,672 Identified intangible assets 419,500 — 419,500 Other assets 11,958 (173 ) 11,785 Deferred income tax liabilities (98,979 ) 4,935 (94,044 ) Other liabilities (15,624 ) (23 ) (15,647 ) Total identifiable net assets 330,184 4,739 334,923 Goodwill 376,701 (4,739 ) 371,962 Total purchase consideration $ 706,885 $ — $ 706,885 Goodwill arising from the acquisition of $372.0 million , included in the Merchant Solutions segment, was attributable to expected growth opportunities, an assembled workforce and potential synergies from combining the acquired business into our existing business. We expect that substantially all of the goodwill from this acquisition will not be deductible for income tax purposes. The following table reflects the estimated fair values of the identified intangible assets of AdvancedMD and the respective weighted-average estimated amortization periods: Estimated Fair Values Weighted-Average Estimated Amortization Periods (in thousands) (years) Customer-related intangible assets $ 303,100 11 Acquired technologies 83,700 5 Trademarks and trade names 32,700 15 Total estimated identified intangible assets $ 419,500 10 ACTIVE Network We acquired the communities and sports divisions of Athlaction Topco, LLC ("ACTIVE Network") on September 1, 2017 , for total purchase consideration of $1.2 billion . ACTIVE Network delivers cloud-based enterprise software, including payment technology solutions, to event organizers in the communities and health and fitness markets. The following table summarizes the cash and noncash components of the consideration transferred on September 1, 2017 (in thousands): Cash consideration paid to ACTIVE Network stockholders $ 599,497 Fair value of Global Payments common stock issued to ACTIVE Network stockholders 572,079 Total purchase consideration $ 1,171,576 We funded the cash consideration with cash on hand and incremental debt. The acquisition-date fair value of 6,357,509 shares of our common stock issued to the sellers was determined based on the share price of our common stock as of the acquisition date and the effect of certain transfer restrictions. The estimated acquisition-date fair values of major classes of assets acquired and liabilities assumed, including a reconciliation to the total purchase consideration, were as follows (in thousands): Cash and cash equivalents $ 42,913 Property and equipment 21,852 Identified intangible assets 410,545 Other assets 87,143 Deferred income taxes (27,640 ) Other liabilities (147,481 ) Total identifiable net assets 387,332 Goodwill 784,244 Total purchase consideration $ 1,171,576 Goodwill of $784.2 million arising from the acquisition, included in the Merchant Solutions segment, was attributable to expected growth opportunities, an assembled workforce and potential synergies from combining our existing businesses. We expect that approximately 80% of the goodwill will be deductible for income tax purposes. The following table reflects the estimated fair values of the identified intangible assets and the respective weighted-average estimated amortization periods: Estimated Fair Values Weighted-Average Estimated Amortization Periods (in thousands) (years) Customer-related intangible assets $ 189,000 17 Acquired technologies 153,300 9 Trademarks and trade names 59,400 15 Contract-based intangible assets 8,845 3 Total estimated acquired intangible assets $ 410,545 13 Valuation of Identified Intangible Assets

REVENUES

REVENUES	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Revenue from Contract with Customer [Abstract]
REVENUES	REVENUES The disclosures in this note arose from our adoption of ASC 606 on January 1, 2018 and are applicable for the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018 . The following tables present a disaggregation of our revenues from contracts with customers by geography for each of our reportable segments: Year Ended December 31, 2019 Merchant Solutions Issuer Solutions Business and Consumer Solutions Intersegment Revenues Total (in thousands) Americas $ 3,240,233 $ 458,289 $ 227,440 $ (18,782 ) $ 3,907,180 Europe 614,747 146,365 — — 761,112 Asia Pacific 243,600 — — — 243,600 $ 4,098,580 $ 604,654 $ 227,440 $ (18,782 ) $ 4,911,892 Year Ended December 31, 2018 Merchant Solutions Issuer Solutions Business and Consumer Solutions Intersegment Revenues Total (in thousands) Americas $ 2,522,285 $ — $ — $ — $ 2,522,285 Europe 589,744 21,185 — — 610,929 Asia Pacific 233,152 — — — 233,152 $ 3,345,181 $ 21,185 $ — $ — $ 3,366,366 The following table presents a disaggregation of our Merchant Solutions segment revenues by distribution channel for the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018: 2019 2018 (in thousands) Direct: Relationship-led $ 2,218,559 $ 1,821,629 Technology-enabled 1,880,021 1,523,552 $ 4,098,580 $ 3,345,181 ASC 606 requires that we determine for each customer arrangement whether revenues should be recognized at a point in time or over time. For the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018 substantially all of our revenues were recognized over time. Supplemental balance sheet information related to contracts from customers as of December 31, 2019 and 2018 was as follows: Balance Sheet Location December 31, 2019 December 31, 2018 (in thousands) Assets: Capitalized costs to obtain customer contracts, net Other noncurrent assets $ 226,945 $ 194,616 Capitalized costs to fulfill customer contracts, net Other noncurrent assets 38,150 12,954 Liabilities: Contract liabilities, net (current) Accounts payable and accrued liabilities 193,405 146,947 Contract liabilities, net (noncurrent) Other noncurrent liabilities 35,272 8,595 The increase in contract liabilities during the year ended December 31, 2019 was primarily attributable to contract liabilities assumed in the Merger. Net contract assets were not material at December 31, 2019 or December 31, 2018 . Revenue recognized for the year ended December 31, 2019 and 2018 from contract liability balances at the beginning of each period was $137.2 million and $97.3 million , respectively. ASC 606 requires disclosure of the aggregate amount of the transaction price allocated to unsatisfied performance obligations. The purpose of this disclosure is to provide additional information about the amounts and expected timing of revenue to be recognized from the remaining performance obligations in our existing contracts. The following table includes estimated revenues expected to be recognized in the future related to performance obligations that are unsatisfied or partially unsatisfied at the end of the reporting period. However, as permitted by ASC 606, we have elected to exclude from this disclosure any contracts with an original duration of one year or less and any variable consideration that meets specified criteria. Accordingly, the total unsatisfied or partially unsatisfied performance obligations related to processing services is significantly higher than the amounts disclosed in table below. Estimated revenues expected to be recognized in the future related to performance obligations that are unsatisfied or partially unsatisfied at December 31, 2019 were as follows (in thousands): Years ending December 31, 2020 $ 883,415 2021 746,773 2022 552,741 2023 332,602 2024 176,181 2025-2029 267,368 Total $ 2,959,080

PROPERTY AND EQUIPMENT

PROPERTY AND EQUIPMENT	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Property, Plant and Equipment [Abstract]
PROPERTY AND EQUIPMENT	PROPERTY AND EQUIPMENT As of December 31, 2019 and 2018 , property and equipment consisted of the following: Range of Depreciable Lives 2019 2018 (Years) (in thousands) Software 1-10 $ 828,249 $ 539,879 Equipment 1-20 522,921 337,589 Buildings 2-43 196,430 27,179 Leasehold improvements 2-40 117,593 73,298 Furniture and fixtures 1-10 82,941 45,346 Land 14,037 3,518 1,762,171 1,026,809 Less accumulated depreciation and amortization (615,104 ) (503,827 ) Work-in-progress 235,735 130,560 $ 1,382,802 $ 653,542 During the fourth quarter of 2019, we wrote-off capitalized software assets of $31.1 million

GOODWILL AND OTHER INTANGIBLE A

GOODWILL AND OTHER INTANGIBLE ASSETS	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Goodwill and Intangible Assets Disclosure [Abstract]
GOODWILL AND OTHER INTANGIBLE ASSETS	GOODWILL AND OTHER INTANGIBLE ASSETS As of December 31, 2019 and 2018 , goodwill and other intangible assets consisted of the following: 2019 2018 (in thousands) Goodwill $ 23,759,740 $ 6,341,355 Other intangible assets: Customer-related intangible assets $ 9,238,728 $ 2,486,217 Acquired technologies 2,732,218 896,701 Contract-based intangible assets 1,974,429 178,391 Trademarks and trade names 1,239,471 289,588 15,184,846 3,850,897 Less accumulated amortization: Customer-related intangible assets 1,225,785 860,715 Acquired technologies 576,928 351,170 Contract-based intangible assets 82,225 67,160 Trademarks and trade names 145,253 83,234 2,030,191 1,362,279 $ 13,154,655 $ 2,488,618 On December 31, 2019, we acquired a merchant portfolio from Desjardins Group, the leading cooperative financial group in Canada. We accounted for the acquisition as an asset purchase and recorded customer-related intangible assets of $307.9 million . The following table sets forth the changes by reportable segment in the carrying amount of goodwill for the years ended December 31, 2019 , 2018 and 2017: Merchant Solutions Issuer Solutions Business and Consumer Solutions Total (in thousands) Balance at December 31, 2016 $ 4,779,802 $ 27,792 $ — $ 4,807,594 Goodwill acquired 784,668 — — 784,668 Effect of foreign currency translation 75,443 5,746 — 81,189 Measurement-period adjustments 30,541 — — 30,541 Balance at December 31, 2017 5,670,454 33,538 — 5,703,992 Goodwill acquired 698,870 — — 698,870 Effect of foreign currency translation (59,374 ) (1,709 ) — (61,083 ) Measurement-period adjustments (424 ) — — (424 ) Balance at December 31, 2018 6,309,526 31,829 — 6,341,355 Goodwill acquired 7,095,167 7,945,029 2,358,657 17,398,853 Effect of foreign currency translation 10,030 8,873 — 18,903 Measurement-period adjustments 629 — 629 Balance at December 31, 2019 $ 13,415,352 $ 7,985,731 $ 2,358,657 $ 23,759,740 There were no accumulated impairment losses for goodwill at any balance sheet date reflected in the table above. Customer-related intangible assets, acquired technologies, contract-based intangible assets and trademarks and trade names acquired during the year ended December 31, 2019 had weighted-average amortization periods of 15.1 years, 6.9 years, 17.7 years and 10.7 years, respectively. Customer-related intangible assets, acquired technologies, contract-based intangible assets and trademarks and trade names acquired during the year ended December 31, 2018 had weighted-average amortization periods of 11.5 years, 6.2 years, 19.3 years and 12.5 years, respectively. Customer-related intangible assets, acquired technologies, contract-based intangible assets and trademarks and trade names acquired during the year ended December 31, 2017 had weighted-average amortization periods of 16.8 years, 8.8 years, 3.0 years and 15.0 years, respectively. Amortization expense of acquired intangibles was $667.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2019 , $377.7 million for the year ended December 31, 2018 and $337.9 million for the year ended December 31, 2017. The estimated amortization expense of acquired intangibles as of December 31, 2019 for the next five years, calculated using the currency exchange rate at the date of acquisition, if applicable, is as follows (in thousands): 2020 $ 1,249,281 2021 1,215,658 2022 1,202,279 2023 1,158,838 2024 1,102,224

LEASES LEASES

LEASES LEASES	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Leases [Abstract]
LEASES	LEASES Our leases consist primarily of operating real estate leases for office space and data centers in the markets in which we conduct business. We also have operating and finance leases for computer and other equipment. Many of our leases include escalating rental payments and incentives, as well as termination and renewal options. Certain of our lease agreements provide that we pay the cost of property taxes, insurance and maintenance. As described in "Note 1 —Basis of Presentation and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies," we adopted ASU 2016-02 on January 1, 2019. Unless otherwise indicated, the following information in this footnote applies only to periods after December 31, 2018. The effects of adopting ASU 2016-02 on our balance sheet as of January 1, 2019 are set forth in the table below. Adoption did not have a material effect on any line items in our consolidated statement of income or on our cash flows from operating activities, investing activities or financing activities included in our consolidated statement of cash flows. As of December 31, 2019 and January 1, 2019, right-of-use assets and lease liabilities consisted of the following: Balance Sheet Location December 31, 2019 January 1, 2019 (in thousands) Assets: Operating lease right-of-use assets: Real estate Other noncurrent assets $ 355,063 $ 231,720 Computer equipment Other noncurrent assets 80,427 — Other Other noncurrent assets 1,310 4,259 Total operating lease right-of-use-assets $ 436,800 $ 235,979 Finance lease right-of-use assets: Computer equipment Property and equipment, net $ 21,901 $ — Other Property and equipment, net 4,808 — 26,709 — Less accumulated depreciation: Computer equipment Property and equipment, net (2,190 ) — Other Property and equipment, net (234 ) — Total accumulated depreciation (2,424 ) — Total finance lease right-of-use assets 24,285 — Total right-of-use assets (1) $ 461,085 $ 235,979 Liabilities: Operating lease liabilities (current) Accounts payable and accrued liabilities $ 88,812 $ 37,339 Operating lease liabilities (noncurrent) Other noncurrent liabilities 397,488 236,697 Finance lease liabilities (current) Current portion of long-term debt 6,570 — Finance lease liabilities (noncurrent) Long-term debt 26,426 — Total lease liabilities $ 519,296 $ 274,036 (1) Approximately 82% of our right-of-use assets are located in the United States. The weighted-average remaining lease term for operating and finance leases at December 31, 2019 was 7.4 years and 5.1 years, respectively. As of December 31, 2019 , the weighted-average discount rate used in the measurement of operating and finance lease liabilities was 4.1% and 2.8% , respectively. As of December 31, 2019 , maturities of lease liabilities were as follows: Operating Leases Finance Leases (in thousands) Years ending December 31, 2020 $ 106,787 $ 7,402 2021 99,196 7,157 2022 87,500 7,123 2023 58,073 6,728 2024 47,994 6,728 2025 and thereafter 177,119 203 Total lease payments (1) 576,669 35,341 Imputed interest (90,369 ) (2,345 ) Total lease liabilities $ 486,300 $ 32,996 (1) Total operating lease payments did not include approximately $64 million for operating leases that had not yet commenced at December 31, 2019 . We expect the lease commencement dates for these leases to occur in 2020 . Operating lease costs in our consolidated statement of income for the year ended December 31, 2019 were $85.9 million , including $71.0 million in selling, general and administrative expenses and $14.9 million in cost of services. Total lease costs for the year ended December 31, 2019 include variable lease costs of approximately $19.1 million , which are primarily comprised of the cost of property taxes, insurance and maintenance. Finance lease costs and lease costs for leases with a term of less than 12 months were not material for the year ended December 31, 2019 . Cash paid for amounts included in the measurement of operating lease liabilities for the year ended December 31, 2019 was $70.4 million , which is included as a component of cash provided by operating activities in the consolidated statement of cash flows. Operating lease liabilities arising from obtaining new or modified right-of-use assets, net of reductions resulting from certain lease modifications, were approximately $28.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2019 . In connection with the Merger, we acquired right-of-use assets and assumed lease liabilities of $256.2 million and $272.0 million , respectively. Future minimum payments at December 31, 2018 for noncancelable operating leases were as follows (in thousands): Years ending December 31: 2019 $ 50,095 2020 47,700 2021 40,035 2022 37,055 2023 33,298 2024 and thereafter 225,225 Total future minimum payments (1) $ 433,408 (1) Future minimum lease payments included approximately $70 million for operating leases that had not commenced at December 31, 2018. Rent expense on all operating leases for the years ended December 31, 2018 and 2017 was $47.1 million and $44.7 million , respectively. During the year ended December 31, 2017, we sold our operating facility in Jeffersonville, Indiana for $37.5 million and simultaneously leased the property back for an initial term of 20 years , followed by four optional renewal terms of five years . The arrangement met the criteria to be treated as a sale for accounting purposes, and as a result, we derecognized the associated property. There was no resulting gain or loss on the sale because the proceeds received were equal to the carrying amount of the property.
LEASES	LEASES Our leases consist primarily of operating real estate leases for office space and data centers in the markets in which we conduct business. We also have operating and finance leases for computer and other equipment. Many of our leases include escalating rental payments and incentives, as well as termination and renewal options. Certain of our lease agreements provide that we pay the cost of property taxes, insurance and maintenance. As described in "Note 1 —Basis of Presentation and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies," we adopted ASU 2016-02 on January 1, 2019. Unless otherwise indicated, the following information in this footnote applies only to periods after December 31, 2018. The effects of adopting ASU 2016-02 on our balance sheet as of January 1, 2019 are set forth in the table below. Adoption did not have a material effect on any line items in our consolidated statement of income or on our cash flows from operating activities, investing activities or financing activities included in our consolidated statement of cash flows. As of December 31, 2019 and January 1, 2019, right-of-use assets and lease liabilities consisted of the following: Balance Sheet Location December 31, 2019 January 1, 2019 (in thousands) Assets: Operating lease right-of-use assets: Real estate Other noncurrent assets $ 355,063 $ 231,720 Computer equipment Other noncurrent assets 80,427 — Other Other noncurrent assets 1,310 4,259 Total operating lease right-of-use-assets $ 436,800 $ 235,979 Finance lease right-of-use assets: Computer equipment Property and equipment, net $ 21,901 $ — Other Property and equipment, net 4,808 — 26,709 — Less accumulated depreciation: Computer equipment Property and equipment, net (2,190 ) — Other Property and equipment, net (234 ) — Total accumulated depreciation (2,424 ) — Total finance lease right-of-use assets 24,285 — Total right-of-use assets (1) $ 461,085 $ 235,979 Liabilities: Operating lease liabilities (current) Accounts payable and accrued liabilities $ 88,812 $ 37,339 Operating lease liabilities (noncurrent) Other noncurrent liabilities 397,488 236,697 Finance lease liabilities (current) Current portion of long-term debt 6,570 — Finance lease liabilities (noncurrent) Long-term debt 26,426 — Total lease liabilities $ 519,296 $ 274,036 (1) Approximately 82% of our right-of-use assets are located in the United States. The weighted-average remaining lease term for operating and finance leases at December 31, 2019 was 7.4 years and 5.1 years, respectively. As of December 31, 2019 , the weighted-average discount rate used in the measurement of operating and finance lease liabilities was 4.1% and 2.8% , respectively. As of December 31, 2019 , maturities of lease liabilities were as follows: Operating Leases Finance Leases (in thousands) Years ending December 31, 2020 $ 106,787 $ 7,402 2021 99,196 7,157 2022 87,500 7,123 2023 58,073 6,728 2024 47,994 6,728 2025 and thereafter 177,119 203 Total lease payments (1) 576,669 35,341 Imputed interest (90,369 ) (2,345 ) Total lease liabilities $ 486,300 $ 32,996 (1) Total operating lease payments did not include approximately $64 million for operating leases that had not yet commenced at December 31, 2019 . We expect the lease commencement dates for these leases to occur in 2020 . Operating lease costs in our consolidated statement of income for the year ended December 31, 2019 were $85.9 million , including $71.0 million in selling, general and administrative expenses and $14.9 million in cost of services. Total lease costs for the year ended December 31, 2019 include variable lease costs of approximately $19.1 million , which are primarily comprised of the cost of property taxes, insurance and maintenance. Finance lease costs and lease costs for leases with a term of less than 12 months were not material for the year ended December 31, 2019 . Cash paid for amounts included in the measurement of operating lease liabilities for the year ended December 31, 2019 was $70.4 million , which is included as a component of cash provided by operating activities in the consolidated statement of cash flows. Operating lease liabilities arising from obtaining new or modified right-of-use assets, net of reductions resulting from certain lease modifications, were approximately $28.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2019 . In connection with the Merger, we acquired right-of-use assets and assumed lease liabilities of $256.2 million and $272.0 million , respectively. Future minimum payments at December 31, 2018 for noncancelable operating leases were as follows (in thousands): Years ending December 31: 2019 $ 50,095 2020 47,700 2021 40,035 2022 37,055 2023 33,298 2024 and thereafter 225,225 Total future minimum payments (1) $ 433,408 (1) Future minimum lease payments included approximately $70 million for operating leases that had not commenced at December 31, 2018. Rent expense on all operating leases for the years ended December 31, 2018 and 2017 was $47.1 million and $44.7 million , respectively. During the year ended December 31, 2017, we sold our operating facility in Jeffersonville, Indiana for $37.5 million and simultaneously leased the property back for an initial term of 20 years , followed by four optional renewal terms of five years . The arrangement met the criteria to be treated as a sale for accounting purposes, and as a result, we derecognized the associated property. There was no resulting gain or loss on the sale because the proceeds received were equal to the carrying amount of the property.

LONG-TERM DEBT AND LINES OF CRE

LONG-TERM DEBT AND LINES OF CREDIT	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Debt Disclosure [Abstract]
LONG-TERM DEBT AND LINES OF CREDIT	LONG-TERM DEBT AND LINES OF CREDIT As of December 31, 2019 and 2018, long-term debt consisted of the following: December 31, 2019 December 31, 2018 (in thousands) Long-term Debt 3.800% senior notes due April 1, 2021 $ 760,996 $ — 3.750% senior notes due June 1, 2023 567,330 — 4.000% senior notes due June 1, 2023 572,522 — 2.650% senior notes due February 15, 2025 991,423 — 4.800% senior notes due April 1, 2026 820,623 — 4.450% senior notes due June 1, 2028 486,982 — 3.200% senior notes due August 15, 2029 1,234,843 — 4.150% senior notes due August 15, 2049 739,431 — Unsecured term loan facility 1,981,758 — Unsecured revolving credit facility 903,000 — Secured term loans — 4,426,243 Secured revolving credit facility — 704,000 Finance lease liabilities 32,996 — Other borrowings 33,597 — Total long-term debt 9,125,501 5,130,243 Less current portion 35,137 115,075 Long-term debt, excluding current portion $ 9,090,364 $ 5,015,168 The carrying amounts of our senior notes and term loans are presented net of unamortized discount and unamortized debt issuance costs, as applicable. At December 31, 2019 , unamortized discount on senior notes was $5.9 million , and unamortized debt issuance costs on senior notes and the unsecured term loan facility were $46.6 million . Unamortized debt issuance costs on our secured term loans at December 31, 2018 were $37.4 million . The portion of unamortized debt issuance costs related to revolving credit facilities is included in other noncurrent assets. At December 31, 2019 , unamortized debt issuance costs on the unsecured revolving credit facility were $17.6 million , and, at December 31, 2018 , unamortized debt issuance costs on the secured revolving credit facility were $12.9 million . The debt discounts and debt issuance costs are recognized as an increase to interest expense over the terms of the respective debt instruments. Amortization of discounts and debt issuance costs was $11.9 million , $11.7 million and $11.8 million , respectively, for years ended December 31, 2019 , 2018 and 2017 . At December 31, 2019 , maturities of long-term debt (excluding finance lease liabilities) were as follows by year (in thousands): Years ending December 31, 2020 $ 28,512 2021 754,906 2022 50,038 2023 1,300,000 2024 2,653,000 2025 and thereafter 4,200,000 Total $ 8,986,456 See "Note 6 —Leases" for more information about our finance lease liabilities, including maturities. Bridge Facility On May 27, 2019 , in connection with our entry into the Merger Agreement described in "Note 2 —Acquisitions," we obtained commitments for a $2.75 billion , 364 -day senior unsecured bridge facility (the "Bridge Facility"). On July 9, 2019 , upon our entry into the senior unsecured term loan and revolving credit facilities described below, the aggregate commitments under the Bridge Facility were reduced to approximately $2.1 billion . Concurrently with the issuance of our senior unsecured notes, the remaining aggregate commitments under the Bridge Facility were reduced to zero and terminated. During the year ended December 31, 2019 , we recognized $11.7 million of fees associated with the Bridge Facility in interest expense. Senior Unsecured Credit Facilities On July 9, 2019 , we entered into a term loan credit agreement ("Term Loan Credit Agreement") and a revolving credit agreement ("Unsecured Revolving Credit Agreement") in each case with Bank of America, N.A., as administrative agent, and a syndicate of financial institutions, as lenders and other agents. The Term Loan Credit Agreement provides for a senior unsecured $2.0 billion term loan facility, and the Unsecured Revolving Credit Agreement provides for a senior unsecured $3.0 billion revolving credit facility. We capitalized debt issuance costs of $12.8 million in connection with the issuances of these term loan and revolving credit facilities. Borrowings under the term loan facility were made in U.S. dollars and borrowings under the revolving credit facility are available to be made in U.S. dollars, euros, sterling, Canadian dollars and, subject to certain conditions, certain other currencies at our option. Borrowings in U.S. dollars and certain other London Interbank Offered Rate ("LIBOR")-quoted currencies will bear interest, at our option, at a rate equal to either (1) the rate (adjusted for any statutory reserve requirements for eurocurrency liabilities) for eurodollar deposits in the London interbank market, (2) a floating rate of interest set forth on the applicable LIBOR screen page designated by Bank of America or (3) the highest of (a) the federal funds effective rate plus 0.5% , (b) the rate of interest as publicly announced by Bank of America as its "prime rate" or (c) LIBOR plus 1.0% , in each case, plus an applicable margin. As of December 31, 2019 , the interest rates on the term loan facility and the revolving credit facility were 3.2% and 3.0% , respectively. In addition, we are required to pay a quarterly commitment fee with respect to the unused portion of the revolving credit facility at an applicable rate per annum ranging from 0.125% to 0.300% depending on our credit rating. Beginning on December 31, 2022 , and at the end of each quarter thereafter, the term loan facility must be repaid in quarterly installments in the amount of 2.50% of original principal through the maturity date with the remaining principal balance due upon maturity in September 2024 . The revolving credit facility also matures in September 2024 . We may issue standby letters of credit of up to $250 million in the aggregate under the revolving credit facility. Outstanding letters of credit under the revolving credit facility reduce the amount of borrowings available to us. The total available commitments under the revolving credit facility at December 31, 2019 were $2,077.5 million . Senior Unsecured Notes On August 14, 2019 , we completed the public offering and issuance of $3.0 billion aggregate principal amount of senior unsecured notes, consisting of the following: (i) $1.0 billion aggregate principal amount of 2.650% senior notes due 2025 ; (ii) $1.25 billion aggregate principal amount of 3.200% senior notes due 2029 ; and (iii) $750.0 million aggregate principal amount of 4.150% senior notes due 2049 . Interest on the senior notes is payable semi-annually in arrears on each February 15 and August 15 , beginning on February 15, 2020 . Each series of the senior notes is redeemable, at our option, in whole or in part, at any time and from time-to-time at the redemption prices set forth in the related indenture. We issued the senior notes at a total discount of $6.1 million and capitalized related debt issuance costs of $29.6 million . From August 14, 2019 until the closing of the Merger on September 18, 2019, the proceeds from the issuance of the senior notes were held in escrow. Upon closing, the funds were released and used together with borrowings under the term loan facility and the revolving credit facility, as well as cash on hand, to repay TSYS' unsecured revolving credit facility, refinance certain of our existing indebtedness, fund cash payments made in lieu of fractional shares and pay transaction fees and costs related to the Merger. In addition, in connection with the Merger, we assumed $3.0 billion aggregate principal amount of senior unsecured notes of TSYS, consisting of the following: (i) $750 million aggregate principal amount of 3.800% senior notes due 2021 ; (ii) $550 million aggregate principal amount of 3.750% senior notes due 2023 ; (iii) $550 million aggregate principal amount of 4.000% senior notes due 2023 ; (iv) $750 million aggregate principal amount of 4.800% senior notes due 2026 ; and (v) $450 million aggregate principal amount of 4.450% senior notes due 2028 . For the 3.800% senior notes due 2021 and the 4.800% senior notes due 2026 , interest is payable semi-annually each April 1 and October 1 . For the 3.750% senior notes due 2023 , the 4.000% senior notes due 2023 and the 4.450% senior notes due 2028 , interest is payable semi-annually each June 1 and December 1 . The senior notes assumed in the Merger were measured at fair value of $3.2 billion at the acquisition date, which exceeded their aggregate face value by $169.0 million . The difference between the fair value and face value of the assumed senior notes is recognized over the terms of the respective notes as a reduction of interest expense. The amortization of this fair value adjustment was $10.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2019 . As of December 31, 2019 , our senior notes had an estimated fair value of $6.3 billion . The fair value of other long-term debt approximated its carrying amount at December 31, 2019 . Prior Credit Facility Prior to completion of the Merger, we were party to a credit facility agreement with Bank of America, N.A., as administrative agent, and a syndicate of financial institutions, as lenders and other agents. The credit facility provided for secured financing comprised of (i) a $1.5 billion revolving credit facility; (ii) a $1.5 billion term loan; (iii) a $1.37 billion term loan; (iv) a $1.14 billion term loan; and (v) a $500.0 million term loan. Upon the consummation of the Merger, all borrowings outstanding and other amounts due under the credit facility were repaid and this credit facility was terminated. In connection with the extinguishment of this credit facility, we wrote off related unamortized debt issuance costs of $16.7 million to interest expense during the year ended December 31, 2019 . Compliance with Covenants The senior unsecured term loan and revolving credit facilities contain customary conditions to funding, affirmative covenants, negative covenants, financial covenants and events of default. As of December 31, 2019 , financial covenants under the term loan facility required a leverage ratio of 3.50 to 1.00 and an interest coverage ratio of 3.00 to 1.00 . We were in compliance with all applicable covenants as of December 31, 2019 . Settlement Lines of Credit In various markets where we do business, we have specialized lines of credit, which are restricted for use in funding settlement. The settlement lines of credit generally have variable interest rates, are subject to annual review and are denominated in local currency but may, in some cases, facilitate borrowings in multiple currencies. For certain of our lines of credit, the available credit is increased by the amount of cash we have on deposit in specific accounts with the lender. Accordingly, the amount of the outstanding line of credit may exceed the stated credit limit. As of December 31, 2019 and 2018 , a total of $74.5 million and $70.6 million , respectively, of cash on deposit was used to determine the available credit. As of December 31, 2019 , we had $463.2 million outstanding under these lines of credit with additional capacity to fund settlement of $981.8 million . During the year ended December 31, 2019 , the maximum and average outstanding balances under these lines of credit were $882.6 million and $423.2 million , respectively. The weighted-average interest rate on these borrowings was 3.16% at December 31, 2019 . Derivative Agreements We have interest rate swap agreements with financial institutions to hedge changes in cash flows attributable to interest rate risk on a portion of our variable-rate debt instruments. Net amounts to be received or paid under the swap agreements are reflected as adjustments to interest expense. Since we have designated the interest rate swap agreements as portfolio cash flow hedges, unrealized gains or losses resulting from adjusting the swaps to fair value are recorded as components of other comprehensive income (loss). In addition, in June 2019, we entered into forward-starting interest rate swap agreements with an aggregate notional amount of $1.0 billion . The forward-starting interest rate swaps, designated as cash flow hedges, were designed to manage the exposure to interest rate volatility in anticipation of the issuance of our senior unsecured notes. During the period from the commencement of the swaps through the date upon which our senior unsecured notes were issued, the effective portion of the unrealized losses on the swaps was included in other comprehensive loss. Upon issuance of our senior unsecured notes, we terminated the forward-starting swap agreements and made settlement payments of $48.3 million , which are included in cash flows from operating activities in our consolidated statement of cash flows for the year ended December 31, 2019 within the caption labeled "Other, net." We have and will continue to reclassify the effective portion of the realized loss from accumulated other comprehensive loss into interest expense over the terms of the related senior notes. The fair values of our interest rate swaps were determined based on the present value of the estimated future net cash flows using implied rates in the applicable yield curve as of December 31, 2019 , and classified within Level 2 of the valuation hierarchy. The table below presents information about our derivative financial instruments as of December 31, 2019 and 2018 : Weighted-Average Fixed Rate of Interest at Range of Maturity Dates at Fair Values at December 31, Derivative Financial Instruments Balance Sheet Location December 31, 2019 December 31, 2019 2019 2018 (in thousands) Interest rate swaps (Notional of $250 million at December 31, 2019 and $750 million at December 31, 2018) Prepaid expenses and other current assets 1.34% July 31, 2020 $ 472 $ 3,200 Interest rate swaps (Notional of $550 million at December 31, 2018) Other noncurrent assets N/A N/A $ — $ 8,256 Interest rate swaps (Notional of $1,550 million at December 31, 2019 and $950 million at December 31, 2018) Other noncurrent liabilities 2.57% March 31, 2021 - December 31, 2022 $ 45,604 $ 14,601 N/A - not applicable. The table below presents the effects of our interest rate swaps on the consolidated statements of income and comprehensive income for the years ended December 31, 2019 , 2018 and 2017 : Years Ended December 31, 2019 2018 2017 (in thousands) Net unrealized gains (losses) recognized in other comprehensive loss $ (90,238 ) $ (7,553 ) $ 4,549 Net unrealized losses (gains) reclassified out of other comprehensive loss to interest expense $ 2,257 $ (4,792 ) $ 5,673 At December 31, 2019 , the amount of net unrealized losses in accumulated other comprehensive loss related to our interest rate swaps that is expected to be reclassified into interest expense during the next 12 months was approximately $20.2 million . Interest Expense Interest expense was $301.2 million , $195.5 million and $174.3 million , respectively, for the years ended December 31, 2019 , 2018 and 2017 .

ACCOUNTS PAYABLE AND ACCRUED LI

ACCOUNTS PAYABLE AND ACCRUED LIABILITIES	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Accounts Payable and Accrued Liabilities [Abstract]
ACCOUNTS PAYABLE AND ACCRUED LIABILITIES	ACCOUNTS PAYABLE AND ACCRUED LIABILITIES As of December 31, 2019 and 2018 , accounts payable and accrued liabilities consisted of the following: 2019 2018 (in thousands) Funds held for customers $ 392,375 $ 454,588 Compensation and benefits 266,967 117,739 Contract liabilities 193,405 146,947 Payment network fees 154,789 96,495 Trade accounts payable 148,084 76,229 Operating lease liabilities 88,812 — Interest 61,296 1,671 Income taxes payable 56,426 51,108 Miscellaneous taxes and withholdings 48,738 15,436 Third-party processing fees 28,041 24,987 Unclaimed property 26,331 24,369 Audit and legal fees 26,080 7,543 Settlement of common share repurchases 17,200 4,000 Current portion of accrued buyout liability (1) 14,817 14,011 Third-party commissions 13,641 24,998 Other 285,164 116,582 $ 1,822,166 $ 1,176,703 (1) The noncurrent portion of accrued buyout liability of $34.2 million and $59.4 million is included in other noncurrent liabilities on the consolidated balance sheets as of December 31, 2019 and 2018 , respectively. At December 31, 2019 , accrued liabilities (compensation and benefits) included obligations totally $37.3 million for one-time employee termination benefits resulting from Merger-related integration activities. During the year ended December 31, 2019 , we recognized charges of $57.1 million for actions taken to date, which included $17.3 million of share-based compensation expense based on accelerated vesting periods for equity awards held by terminated employees. These charges are recorded within selling, general and administrative expenses in our consolidated statements of income and included within Corporate expenses for segment reporting purposes. New obligations may arise as Merger-related integration activities continue in 2020.

INCOME TAX

INCOME TAX	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]
INCOME TAX	INCOME TAX The income tax expense (benefit) for the years ended December 31, 2019 , 2018 and 2017 consisted of the following: Years Ended December 31, 2019 2018 2017 (in thousands) Current income tax expense (benefit): Federal $ 50,048 $ (20,984 ) $ 79,903 State 29,788 21,122 3,468 Foreign 90,895 79,320 67,851 170,731 79,458 151,222 Deferred income tax expense (benefit): Federal (79,813 ) (8,760 ) (266,869 ) State (29,326 ) (1,684 ) 9,678 Foreign 598 8,474 4,582 (108,541 ) (1,970 ) (252,609 ) $ 62,190 $ 77,488 $ (101,387 ) Income tax expense allocated to noncontrolling interests was $12.3 million , $10.6 million and $8.6 million for the years ended December 31, 2019 , 2018 and 2017 , respectively. The following table presents income before income taxes for the years ended December 31, 2019 , 2018 and 2017 : Years Ended December 31, 2019 2018 2017 (in thousands) United States $ 60,000 $ 131,067 $ 29,692 Foreign 457,925 431,088 362,991 $ 517,925 $ 562,155 $ 392,683 On December 22, 2017 , the United States enacted the U.S. Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (the "2017 U.S. Tax Act"), which resulted in numerous changes, including a reduction in the U.S. federal tax rate from 35% to 21% effective January 1, 2018 and the transition of the U.S. federal tax system to a territorial regime. As part of this transition, the 2017 U.S. Tax Act imposed a one-time mandatory "transition" tax on foreign earnings not previously subjected to U.S. income tax. Following the guidance in SAB 118, w e made reasonable estimates of the effects of the 2017 U.S. Tax Act on our existing deferred tax balances and the one-time transition tax. For these items, which are further described below, we recognized a provisional net income tax benefit of $158.7 million , which was included as a component of income tax benefit in our consolidated statement of income for the year ended December 31, 2017. We remeasured our U.S. deferred tax assets and liabilities based on the rates at which they are expected to reverse, which is now 21% instead of 35% and recorded a provisional income tax benefit of $222.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2017. The one-time transition tax established by the 2017 U.S. Tax Act is based on our total post-1986 foreign earnings and profits, offset by allowable foreign tax credits. The transition tax rate applied to our foreign earnings is based on the amount of those earnings held in cash and cash equivalents, as well as other assets. For the year ended December 31, 2017, we recorded a provisional income tax expense of $63.7 million for the transition tax on our previously deferred foreign earnings. During 2018, we continued to analyze other provisions of the 2017 U.S. Tax Act, including the effects on our foreign tax pools and resulting foreign tax credits, and reduced our estimated transition tax liability to $40.4 million , which resulted in an income tax benefit of $23.3 million . As of December 31, 2018, we had completed our accounting for the transition effects of the 2017 U.S. Tax Act. Approximately $27.0 million of our undistributed foreign earnings are considered to be indefinitely reinvested outside the United States as of December 31, 2019 . Because those earnings are considered to be indefinitely reinvested, no deferred income taxes have been provided thereon. If we were to make a distribution of any portion of those earnings in the form of dividends or otherwise, any such amounts would be subject to withholding taxes payable to various foreign jurisdictions; however, the amounts would not be subject to any additional U.S. income tax. Our effective tax rates for the years ended December 31, 2019 , 2018 and 2017 differ from the federal statutory rate for those periods as follows: Years Ended December 31, 2019 2018 2017 Federal U.S. statutory rate 21.0 % 21.0 % 35.0 % Valuation allowance 4.6 1.4 (3.2 ) Foreign interest income not subject to tax (4.5 ) (1.7 ) (2.2 ) Tax credits (3.9 ) (0.5 ) (0.3 ) Foreign-derived intangible income deduction (2.7 ) (1.6 ) — Uncertain tax positions (2.6 ) (0.9 ) (0.5 ) Share-based compensation expense (2.5 ) (2.1 ) (4.2 ) State income taxes, net of federal income tax benefit 1.0 2.7 1.9 Foreign income taxes (0.7 ) (0.5 ) (12.0 ) Federal U.S. transition tax — (4.1 ) 16.2 Federal U.S. rate reduction — — (55.6 ) Other SAB 118 adjustments — (0.6 ) — Other 2.3 0.7 (0.9 ) Effective tax rate 12.0 % 13.8 % (25.8 )% Deferred income taxes are determined based on the difference between the financial statement and tax bases of assets and liabilities using enacted tax laws and rates. Deferred income taxes as of December 31, 2019 and 2018 reflect the effect of temporary differences between the amounts of assets and liabilities for financial accounting and income tax purposes. As of December 31, 2019 and 2018 , principal components of deferred tax items were as follows: 2019 2018 (in thousands) Deferred income tax assets: Lease liabilities $ 94,965 $ — Financial instruments 65,848 768 Share-based compensation expense 48,204 11,333 Accrued expenses 40,035 35,913 Foreign net operating loss carryforwards 37,818 10,833 Income tax credit carryforwards 37,057 3,102 Domestic net operating loss carryforwards 22,254 20,096 Basis difference - U.K. business 2,030 4,890 Other 28,460 13,036 376,671 99,971 Less: valuation allowance (72,042 ) (23,390 ) 304,629 76,581 Deferred tax liabilities: Acquired intangibles 2,963,695 522,636 Property and equipment 193,052 102,654 Partnership interests 108,220 — Right-of-use assets 83,023 — Other 95,988 28,188 3,443,978 653,478 Net deferred income tax liability $ 3,139,349 $ 576,897 The net deferred income taxes reflected on our consolidated balance sheets as of December 31, 2019 and 2018 are as follows: 2019 2018 (in thousands) Noncurrent deferred income tax asset $ 6,292 $ 8,128 Noncurrent deferred income tax liability 3,145,641 585,025 Net deferred income tax liability $ 3,139,349 $ 576,897 A valuation allowance is provided against deferred tax assets when it is more likely than not that some portion or all of the deferred tax assets will not be realized. Changes to our valuation allowance during the years ended December 31, 2019 , 2018 and 2017 are summarized below (in thousands): Balance at December 31, 2016 $ (16,611 ) Allowance for foreign net operating loss carryforwards (6,469 ) Allowance for domestic net operating loss carryforwards (3,793 ) Allowance for state credit carryforwards (685 ) Rate change on domestic net operating loss and capital loss carryforwards 3,868 Utilization of foreign income tax credit carryforward 7,140 Balance at December 31, 2017 (16,550 ) Allowance for foreign net operating loss carryforwards (7,979 ) Allowance for domestic net operating loss carryforwards 1,145 Allowance for state credit carryforwards (6 ) Balance at December 31, 2018 (23,390 ) Allowance for foreign net operating loss carryforwards (26,439 ) Allowance for foreign credit carryforwards (15,226 ) Allowance for state credit carryforwards (6,680 ) Allowance for domestic net operating loss carryforwards (307 ) Balance at December 31, 2019 $ (72,042 ) The increases in the valuation allowance related to both the state and foreign credit carryforwards for the year ended December 31, 2019 relate primarily to carryforward assets recognized in connection with the Merger. Foreign net operating loss carryforwards of $176.9 million , domestic net operating loss carryforwards of $41.6 million and tax credit carryforwards of $36.1 million at December 31, 2019 will expire between December 31, 2024 and December 31, 2039 , if not utilized. We conduct business globally and file income tax returns in the U.S. federal jurisdiction and various state and foreign jurisdictions. In the normal course of business, we are subject to examination by taxing authorities around the world, including, without limitation, the United States and the United Kingdom. We are no longer subject to state income tax examinations for years ended on or before May 31, 2010, U.S. federal income tax examinations for years ended on or before May 31, 2016 and U.K. federal income tax examinations for years ended on or before May 31, 2015. A reconciliation of the beginning and ending amounts of unrecognized income tax benefits, excluding penalties and interest, for the years ended December 31, 2019 , 2018 and 2017 as follows: Years Ended December 31, 2019 2018 2017 (in thousands) Balance at the beginning of the year $ 21,197 $ 31,218 $ 17,916 Additions related to acquisitions 22,283 — 13,061 Reductions for income tax positions of prior years (14,235 ) (10,021 ) (7,285 ) Settlements with income tax authorities (2,583 ) — (449 ) Additions for income tax positions of prior years 1,803 — 411 Additions based on income tax positions related to the current year 1,206 — 7,537 Effect of foreign currency fluctuations on income tax positions — — 27 Balance at the end of the year $ 29,671 $ 21,197 $ 31,218 As of December 31, 2019 , the total amount of gross unrecognized income tax benefits that, if recognized, would affect the provision for income taxes is $27.4 million .

SHAREHOLDERS_ EQUITY

SHAREHOLDERS’ EQUITY	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Equity [Abstract]
SHAREHOLDERS’ EQUITY	SHAREHOLDERS’ EQUITY We make repurchases of our common stock mainly through the use of open market purchases. As of December 31, 2019 , we were authorized to repurchase up to $473.4 million of our common stock. Information about shares repurchased and retired was as follows for the years ended December 31, 2019 , 2018 and 2017: Years Ended December 31, 2019 2018 2017 (in thousands, except per share amounts) Number of shares repurchased and retired 2,328 1,927 376 Cost of shares repurchased, including commissions $ 324,583 $ 212,196 $ 34,811 Average cost per share $ 139.42 $ 110.11 $ 92.51 In connection with the completion of the Merger, our Articles of Incorporation were amended to increase the number of authorized shares of Global Payments common stock from 200 million to 400 million . On February 5, 2019 , the board of directors increased its authorization to repurchase shares of our common stock to $750 million , inclusive of prior share repurchase programs authorized by the board and repurchases made thereunder. On February 19, 2020 , the board of directors declared a cash dividend of $0.195 per share payable on March 27, 2020 to common shareholders of record on March 13, 2020 .

SHARE-BASED AWARDS AND OPTIONS

SHARE-BASED AWARDS AND OPTIONS	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Share-based Payment Arrangement [Abstract]
SHARE-BASED AWARDS AND OPTIONS	SHARE-BASED AWARDS AND OPTIONS We have granted nonqualified stock options and restricted stock awards to key employees, officers and directors under a long-term incentive plan, which permits grants of equity to employees, officers, directors and consultants. A total of 14.0 million shares of our common stock has been reserved and made available for issuance pursuant to awards granted under the plan. The awards are held in escrow and released upon the grantee's satisfaction of conditions of the award certificate. The following table summarizes share-based compensation expense and the related income tax benefit recognized for our share-based awards and stock options: Years Ended December 31, 2019 2018 2017 (in thousands) Share-based compensation expense $ 89,634 $ 57,826 $ 39,095 Income tax benefit $ 20,519 $ 13,038 $ 13,849 Restricted Stock Restricted stock awards vest in equal annual installments over a three -year period and in some cases vest at the end of a three -year service period. Restricted shares cannot be sold or transferred until they have vested. The grant date fair value of restricted stock awards, which is based on the quoted market value of our common stock on the grant date, is recognized as share-based compensation expense on a straight-line basis over the vesting period. Performance Units Certain of our executives have been granted performance units under our long-term incentive plan. Performance units are performance-based restricted stock units that, after a performance period, may convert into common shares, which may be restricted. The number of shares is dependent upon the achievement of certain performance measures during the performance period. The target number of performance units and any market-based performance measures are set by the compensation committee of our board of directors ("Compensation Committee"). Performance units are converted only after the compensation committee certifies performance based on pre-established goals. The Compensation Committee may set a range of possible performance-based outcomes for performance units. For awards with only performance conditions, we recognize compensation expense on a straight-line basis over the performance period using the grant date fair value of the award, which is based on the number of shares expected to be earned according to the level of achievement of performance goals. If the number of shares expected to be earned were to change at any time during the performance period, we would make a cumulative adjustment to share-based compensation expense based on the revised number of shares expected to be earned. The performance periods for awards granted generally range from one to three years . To the extent earned, these performance units convert into unrestricted shares after performance results are certified by the Compensation Committee. We recognize share-based compensation expense based on the grant-date fair value of the performance-based restricted stock units, as determined by use of a Monte Carlo model, on a straight-line basis over the performance period. The following table summarizes the changes in unvested restricted stock awards and performance units for the years ended December 31, 2019 , 2018 and 2017 : Shares Weighted-Average (in thousands) Unvested at December 31, 2016 1,263 $49.55 Granted 899 79.79 Vested (858 ) 39.26 Forfeited (78 ) 59.56 Unvested at December 31, 2017 1,226 78.29 Granted 650 109.85 Vested (722 ) 60.08 Forfeited (70 ) 91.47 Unvested at December 31, 2018 1,084 108.51 Replacement Awards 894 163.74 Granted 784 142.26 Vested (781 ) 105.04 Forfeited (137 ) 124.30 Unvested at December 31, 2019 1,844 $149.96 The total fair value of restricted stock and performance awards vested was $82.1 million , $43.4 million and $33.7 million for the years ended December 31, 2019 , 2018 and 2017 , respectively. For restricted stock awards and performance units, we recognized compensation expense of $74.3 million , $53.2 million and $35.2 million for the years ended December 31, 2019 , 2018 and 2017 , respectively. As of December 31, 2019 , there was $142.9 million of unrecognized compensation expense related to unvested restricted stock awards and performance units that we expect to recognize over a weighted-average period of 2.1 years. Our restricted stock and performance unit plans provide for accelerated vesting under certain conditions. Stock Options Stock options are granted with an exercise price equal to 100% of fair market value of our common stock on the date of grant and have a term of ten years . Stock options vest in equal installments on each of the first three anniversaries of the grant date. Our stock option plans provide for accelerated vesting under certain conditions. The following table summarizes changes in stock option activity for the years ended December 31, 2019 , 2018 and 2017 : Options Weighted-Average Exercise Price Weighted-Average Remaining Contractual Term Aggregate Intrinsic Value (in thousands) (years) (in millions) Outstanding at December 31, 2016 759 $37.51 6.0 $24.5 Granted 124 79.45 Exercised (160 ) 23.50 10.1 Outstanding at December 31, 2017 723 47.79 6.4 37.9 Granted 103 114.70 Forfeited (22 ) 100.38 Exercised (206 ) 42.65 16.5 Outstanding at December 31, 2018 598 59.16 6.2 27.3 Replacement Awards 1,336 68.96 Granted 109 128.22 Forfeited (23 ) 110.13 Exercised (265 ) 33.99 28.8 Outstanding at December 31, 2019 1,755 $74.06 6.5 $190.3 Options vested and exercisable at December 31, 2019 1,167 $58.03 5.6 $145.3 We recognized compensation expense for stock options of $12.5 million , $2.7 million and $2.6 million during the years ended December 31, 2019 , 2018 and 2017 , respectively. The aggregate intrinsic value of stock options exercised during the years ended December 31, 2019 , 2018 and 2017 was $28.8 million , $16.5 million and $10.1 million . As of December 31, 2019 , we had $10.3 million of unrecognized compensation expense related to unvested stock options that we expect to recognize over a weighted-average period of 1.7 years. The weighted-average grant-date fair value of stock options granted, including Replacement Awards, during the years ended December 31, 2019 , 2018 and 2017 was $99.56 , $35.09 , and $23.68 , respectively. Fair value was estimated on the date of grant using the Black-Scholes valuation model with the following weighted-average assumptions: Years Ended December 31, 2019 2018 2017 Risk-free interest rate 1.72 % 2.60 % 1.99 % Expected volatility 31 % 29 % 30 % Dividend yield 0.04 % 0.04 % 0.06 % Expected term (years) 5 5 5 The risk-free interest rate was based on the yield of a zero coupon U.S. Treasury security with a maturity equal to the expected life of the stock option from the date of the grant. Our assumption on expected volatility is based on our historical volatility. The dividend yield assumption was determined using our average common stock price over the preceding year and the annualized amount of our most current quarterly dividend per share. We based our assumption of the expected term of the stock options on the historical exercise patterns of our stock options and our expectations of future exercise patterns.

SUPPLEMENTAL CASH FLOW INFORMAT

SUPPLEMENTAL CASH FLOW INFORMATION	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Supplemental Cash Flow Information [Abstract]
SUPPLEMENTAL CASH FLOW INFORMATION	SUPPLEMENTAL CASH FLOW INFORMATION Supplemental cash flow disclosures for the years ended December 31, 2019 , 2018 and 2017 are as follows: Years Ended December 31, 2019 2018 2017 (in thousands) Income taxes paid, net of refunds $ 146,739 $ 101,302 $ 97,002 Interest paid $ 206,562 $ 177,525 $ 154,200

NONCONTROLLING INTERESTS

NONCONTROLLING INTERESTS	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Noncontrolling Interest [Abstract]
NONCONTROLLING INTERESTS	NONCONTROLLING INTERESTS The following table presents the reconciliation of net income attributable to noncontrolling interests to comprehensive income attributable to noncontrolling interests for the years ended December 31, 2019 , 2018 and 2017 : Years Ended December 31, 2019 2018 2017 (in thousands) Net income attributable to noncontrolling interests $ 38,663 $ 32,614 $ 25,645 Foreign currency translation attributable to noncontrolling interests (2,725 ) (2,696 ) 13,807 Comprehensive income attributable to noncontrolling interests $ 35,938 $ 29,918 $ 39,452

ACCUMULATED OTHER COMPREHENSIVE

ACCUMULATED OTHER COMPREHENSIVE LOSS	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Equity [Abstract]
ACCUMULATED OTHER COMPREHENSIVE LOSS	ACCUMULATED OTHER COMPREHENSIVE LOSS The changes in the accumulated balances for each component of other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax, were as follows for the years ended December 31, 2019 , 2018 and 2017 : Foreign Currency Translation Net Unrealized Gains (Losses) on Hedging Activities Other Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss (in thousands) Balance at December 31, 2016 $ (318,450 ) $ (640 ) $ (3,627 ) $ (322,717 ) Other comprehensive income (loss) 132,594 7,639 (660 ) 139,573 Balance at December 31, 2017 (185,856 ) 6,999 (4,287 ) (183,144 ) Cumulative effect of adoption of new accounting standards (1,843 ) — — (1,843 ) Other comprehensive income (loss) (116,575 ) (9,373 ) 760 (125,188 ) Balance at December 31, 2018 (304,274 ) (2,374 ) (3,527 ) (310,175 ) Other comprehensive income (loss) 62,375 (66,945 ) 4,174 (396 ) Balance at December 31, 2019 $ (241,899 ) $ (69,319 ) $ 647 $ (310,571 )

SEGMENT INFORMATION

SEGMENT INFORMATION	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Segment Reporting [Abstract]
SEGMENT INFORMATION	SEGMENT INFORMATION Information About Profit and Assets Prior to the completion of the Merger, we operated in three reportable segments: North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific. In the fourth quarter of 2019, as a result of the merger with TSYS, we realigned our executive management and organizational structures. Based on an evaluation performed in accordance with the guidance provided in Accounting Standards Codification Topic 280, Segment Reporting , we determined that our new reportable segments as of December 31, 2019 were: Merchant Solutions, Issuer Solutions and Business and Consumer Solutions. In connection with the organizational realignment, the legacy Global Payments businesses are included in the Merchant Solutions segment with the exception of a small portion of our European business that is included in the Issuer Solutions segment. Certain operating expenses that prior to the Merger were considered "enterprise-wide" expenses and reported in Corporate are now reflected in the Merchant Solutions segment. Our payment technology solutions are similar around the world in that we enable our customers to accept card, electronic, check and digital-based payments. Through our Merchant Solutions segment, our offerings include, but are not limited to, authorization services, settlement and funding services, customer support and help-desk functions, chargeback resolution, terminal rental, sales and deployment, payment security services, consolidated billing and statements and on-line reporting. In addition, we offer a wide array of enterprise software solutions that streamline business operations to customers in numerous vertical markets. We also provide a variety of value-added services, including analytic and engagement tools, payroll services and reporting that assist our customers with driving demand and operating their businesses more efficiently. Through our Issuer Solutions segment, we provide solutions that enable financial institutions and retailers to manage their card portfolios, reduce technical complexity and overhead and offer a seamless experience for cardholders on a single platform. In addition, we provide flexible commercial payments and ePayables solutions that support business-to-business payment processes for businesses and governments. We also offer complementary services including account management and servicing, fraud solution services, analytics and business intelligence, cards, statements and correspondence, customer contact solutions and risk management solutions. Through our Business and Consumer Solutions segment, we provide general purpose reloadable prepaid debit and payroll cards, demand deposit accounts and other financial service solutions to the underbanked and other consumers and businesses in the United States. We evaluate performance and allocate resources based on the operating income of each operating segment. The operating income of each operating segment includes the revenues of the segment less expenses that are directly related to those revenues. Operating overhead, shared costs and share-based compensation costs are included in Corporate. Interest and other income, interest and other expense, income tax expense and equity in income of equity method investments, net of tax, are not allocated to the individual segments. We do not evaluate the performance of or allocate resources to our operating segments using asset data. The accounting policies of the reportable operating segments are the same as those described in the Summary of Significant Accounting Policies in "Note 1 - Basis of Presentation and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies." The presentation of segment information for the years ended December 31, 2018 and 2017 has been recast to align with the segment presentation for the year ended December 31, 2019. Information on segments and reconciliations to consolidated revenues, consolidated operating income and consolidated depreciation and amortization are as follows: Years Ended December 31, 2019 2018 2017 (in thousands) Revenues (1)(2) : Merchant Solutions $ 4,098,580 $ 3,345,181 $ 3,955,988 Issuer Solutions 604,654 21,185 19,175 Business and Consumer Solutions 227,440 — — Segment revenues 4,930,674 3,366,366 3,975,163 Less: intersegment revenues (18,782 ) — — Consolidated revenues $ 4,911,892 $ 3,366,366 $ 3,975,163 Operating income (loss) (2)(3) : Merchant Solutions $ 1,148,975 $ 940,157 $ 771,911 Issuer Solutions 82,172 14,084 12,710 Business and Consumer Solutions 19,473 — — Corporate (459,203 ) (217,186 ) (225,753 ) Consolidated operating income $ 791,417 $ 737,055 $ 558,868 Depreciation and amortization (2) : Merchant Solutions $ 677,196 $ 516,731 $ 444,100 Issuer Solutions 157,799 710 647 Business and Consumer Solutions 34,914 — — Corporate 8,426 5,372 6,404 Consolidated depreciation and amortization $ 878,335 $ 522,813 $ 451,151 (1) As more fully described in "Note 1—Basis of Presentation and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies" and "Note 3 —Revenues" we adopted a new revenue accounting standard on January 1, 2018 that resulted in revenue being presented net of certain fees that we pay to third parties, including payment networks. This change in presentation affected our reported revenues and operating expenses for all periods after the year ended December 31, 2017 by the same amount and had no effect on operating income. (2) Revenues, operating income and depreciation and amortization reflect the effects of acquired businesses from the respective dates of acquisition. For further discussion, see "Note 2 —Acquisitions." (3) During the year ended December 31, 2019 , operating income for our Merchant Solutions segment reflected the effect of acquisition and integration expenses of $56.1 million . Operating loss for Corporate included acquisition and integration expenses of $199.5 million , $56.1 million and $94.6 million , respectively, during the years ended December 31, 2019 , 2018 and 2017 . Acquisition and integration expenses for 2019 were primarily related to the Merger. Entity-Wide Information As a percentage of our total consolidated revenues, revenues from external customers in the United States and the United Kingdom were 72% and 8% , respectively, for the year ended December 31, 2019 , 67% and 9% , respectively, for the year ended December 31, 2018 , and 66% and 11% , respectively, for the year ended December 31, 2017 . Revenues from external customers are attributed to individual countries based on the location of the customer arrangements. Our results of operations and our financial condition are not significantly reliant upon any single customer. Long-lived assets, excluding goodwill and other intangible assets, by location as of December 31, 2019 and 2018 were as follows: 2019 2018 (in thousands) United States $ 950,567 $ 516,449 Foreign countries 432,235 137,093 $ 1,382,802 $ 653,542

COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES

COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]
COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES	COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES Purchase Obligations We have contractual obligations related to service arrangements with suppliers for fixed or minimum amounts. Future minimum payments at December 31, 2019 for purchase obligations were as follows (in thousands): Years ending December 31: 2020 $ 125,533 2021 89,198 2022 36,835 2023 30,843 2024 25,632 Thereafter 28,718 Total future minimum payments $ 336,759 Legal Matters We are party to a number of claims and lawsuits incidental to our business. In our opinion, the liabilities, if any, which may ultimately result from the outcome of such matters, individually or in the aggregate, are not expected to have a material adverse effect on our financial position, liquidity, results of operations or cash flows. Six putative class action lawsuits challenging the Merger were filed. Two of these lawsuits, captioned Peters v. Total System Services, Inc. et al. (Case No. 4:19-cv-00114) and Wolf v. Total System Services, Inc., et al. (Case No. 4:19-cv-00115), were filed in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Georgia on July 18, 2019. The third lawsuit, captioned Drulias v. Global Payments Inc., et. al (Case No. 60774/2019) was filed in the Supreme Court of the State of New York, County of Westchester on July 19, 2019. The fourth lawsuit, captioned Hickey v. Total System Services, Inc., et al. (Civil Action No. 1:19-cv-03337-LMM) was filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, Atlanta Division, on July 23, 2019. The fifth lawsuit, captioned, Cason v. Total System Services, Inc., et al. (Case No. 1:19-cv-07471) was filed in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York on August 9, 2019. The sixth lawsuit, captioned, Cheng v. Total System Services, et al. (Case No: 1:19-cv-01513-UNA) was filed in the United States District Court for the District of Delaware on August 13, 2019. The complaints filed in the lawsuits assert, among other matters, claims for filing a materially incomplete registration statement with the SEC. Global Payments and TSYS released supplemental disclosures relating to the Merger in late August 2019, and the Peters lawsuit, the Wolf lawsuit and the Cheng lawsuit have been voluntarily dismissed. On September 23, 2019, a jury in the Superior Court of Dekalb County, Georgia, awarded Frontline Processing Corp. ("Frontline") $135.2 million in damages, costs and attorney's fees (plus interest) following a trial of a breach of contract dispute between Frontline and Global Payments, wherein Frontline alleged that Global Payments violated provisions of the parties' Referral Agreement and Master Services Agreement. The Superior Court entered a final judgment on the verdict in favor of Frontline on September 30, 2019. We believe the jury verdict is in error and Frontline’s case is completely without merit, and we are appealing the decision to the Georgia Court of Appeals. While it is reasonably possible that we will incur some loss between zero and the judgment amount plus interest, we have determined that it is not probable that Global Payments has incurred a loss under the applicable accounting standard (ASC Topic 450, Loss Contingencies ) as of December 31, 2019 . As a result, we have not recorded a liability on the consolidated balance sheet with respect to this litigation. Operating Taxes We are subject to certain taxes that are not derived based on earnings (e.g., sales, gross receipts, property, value-added and other business taxes). During the course of operations, we must interpret the meaning of various operating tax regulations in the United States and in the foreign jurisdictions in which we do business. Taxing authorities in those various jurisdictions may arrive at different interpretations of applicable tax laws and regulations which could result in the payment of additional taxes in those jurisdictions. BIN/ICA Agreements We have entered into sponsorship or depository and processing agreements with certain banks. These agreements allow us to use the banks' identification numbers, referred to as Bank Identification Number ("BIN") for Visa transactions and an Interbank Card Association ("ICA") number for Mastercard transactions, to clear credit card transactions through Visa and Mastercard. Certain of these agreements contain financial covenants, and we were in compliance with all such covenants as of December 31, 2019 .

QUARTERLY CONSOLIDATED FINANCIA

QUARTERLY CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL INFORMATION (UNAUDITED)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Quarterly Financial Information Disclosure [Abstract]
QUARTERLY CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL INFORMATION (UNAUDITED)	QUARTERLY CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL INFORMATION (UNAUDITED) Summarized quarterly results for the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018 were as follows: Quarters Ended March 31, 2019 June 30, 2019 September 30, 2019 December 31, 2019 (in thousands, except per share data) Revenues $ 883,039 $ 935,152 $ 1,105,941 $ 1,987,760 Operating income 199,492 221,726 174,037 196,162 Net income 119,205 130,039 105,731 114,301 Net income attributable to Global Payments 112,341 120,458 95,044 102,770 Basic earnings per share attributable to Global Payments 0.71 0.77 0.54 0.34 Diluted earnings per share attributable to Global Payments 0.71 0.77 0.54 0.34 Quarters Ended March 31, 2018 June 30, 2018 September 30, 2018 December 31, 2018 (in thousands, except per share data) Revenues $ 794,977 $ 833,164 $ 857,670 $ 880,555 Operating income 156,170 190,737 223,162 166,986 Net income 97,586 117,729 186,029 83,323 Net income attributable to Global Payments 91,399 109,069 176,370 75,215 Basic earnings per share attributable to Global Payments 0.57 0.69 1.12 0.48 Diluted earnings per share attributable to Global Payments 0.57 0.68 1.11 0.47 The quarterly financial data in the table above reflect the effects of business combinations and borrowings to fund certain of those business combinations. Notably, we completed our merger with TSYS during the quarter ended September 30, 2019. Additionally, our consolidated results reflected incremental expenses associated with the acquisition and integration of acquired businesses. See "Note 2 —Acquisitions" for further discussion of our acquisitions. Acquisition and integration expenses were $5.3 million , $14.2 million , $100.8 million and $135.3 million for the quarters ended March 31, 2019, June 30, 2019, September 30, 2019 and December 31, 2019 , respectively. Acquisition and integration expenses were $18.3 million , $8.1 million , $8.2 million and $21.5 million for the quarters ended March 31, 2018, June 30, 2018, September 30, 2018 and December 31, 2018 , respectively. Results for the quarter ended September 30, 2018 reflect the effects of a net income tax benefit of $23.3 million in connection with adjustments made to accounting estimates associated with the 2017 U.S. Tax Act as further discussed in "Note 9 —Income Tax."

SCHEDULE II VALUATION AND QUALI

SCHEDULE II VALUATION AND QUALIFYING ACCOUNTS	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
SEC Schedule, 12-09, Valuation and Qualifying Accounts [Abstract]
SCHEDULE II VALUATION AND QUALIFYING ACCOUNTS	SCHEDULE II Valuation & Qualifying Accounts (in thousands) (a) (b) (c) (d) (e) Description Balance at Beginning of Period Additions: Charged to Costs and Expenses (2) Deductions: Uncollectible Accounts Write-Offs (Recoveries) Balance at End of Period Allowance for doubtful accounts December 31, 2017 $ 1,092 $ 6,113 $ 5,378 $ 1,827 December 31, 2018 1,827 10,430 9,093 3,164 December 31, 2019 $ 3,164 $ 20,375 $ 10,350 $ 13,189 Reserve for merchant losses and sales allowances (1) December 31, 2017 $ 2,939 $ 18,767 $ 17,666 $ 4,040 December 31, 2018 4,040 22,312 22,140 4,212 December 31, 2019 $ 4,212 $ 24,525 $ 25,049 $ 3,688 Reserve for check guarantee operating losses December 31, 2017 $ 5,786 $ 28,064 $ 28,112 $ 5,738 December 31, 2018 5,738 19,314 19,987 5,065 December 31, 2019 $ 5,065 $ 13,346 $ 14,490 $ 3,921 Reserve for contract contingencies and processing errors December 31, 2019 $ — $ 5,669 $ 1,453 $ 4,216 Reserve for cardholder losses December 31, 2019 $ — $ 24,391 $ 15,159 $ 9,232 Deferred income tax asset valuation allowance December 31, 2017 $ 16,611 $ 7,079 $ 7,140 $ 16,550 December 31, 2018 16,550 6,840 — 23,390 December 31, 2019 $ 23,390 $ 48,652 $ — $ 72,042 (1) Included in settlement processing obligations. (2) In addition to amounts charged to costs and expenses, amounts in this column include additions, as applicable, resulting from business combinations.

BASIS OF PRESENTATION AND SUM_2

BASIS OF PRESENTATION AND SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Policies)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Accounting Policies [Abstract]
Business, consolidation and presentation	Business, consolidation and presentation — We are a leading pure play payments technology company delivering innovative software and services to our customers globally. Our technologies, services and employee expertise enable us to provide a broad range of solutions that allow our customers to operate their businesses more efficiently across a variety of channels around the world. We operate in three reportable segments: Merchant Solutions, Issuer Solutions and Business and Consumer Solutions, which are described in "Note 15 —Segment Information." Global Payments Inc. and its consolidated subsidiaries are referred to collectively as "Global Payments," the "Company," "we," "our" or "us," unless the context requires otherwise. On September 18, 2019 , we consummated our merger with Total System Services, Inc. ("TSYS") (the "Merger") for total purchase consideration of $24.5 billion , primarily funded with shares of our common stock. Prior to the Merger, TSYS was a leading global payments provider, offering seamless, secure and innovative solutions to issuers, merchants and consumers. See "Note 2 —Acquisitions" for further discussion of the Merger and other acquisitions. These consolidated financial statements include our accounts and those of our majority-owned subsidiaries and all intercompany balances and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation. Investments in entities that we do not control are accounted for using the equity or cost method, depending upon our ability to exercise significant influence over operating and financial policies. These consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States ("GAAP").
Use of estimates	Use of estimates — The preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make certain estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosures of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements, as well as the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reported period. Actual results could differ materially from those estimates.
Recently adopted and recently issued but not yet adopted accounting pronouncements	Recently adopted accounting pronouncements — The Financial Accounting Standards Board ("FASB") issued Accounting Standards Update ("ASU") 2016-02, "Leases", which requires recognition of assets and liabilities for the rights and obligations created by leases and new disclosures about leases. We adopted ASU 2016-02, as well as other related clarifications and interpretive guidance issued by the FASB, on January 1, 2019 using the modified retrospective transition method. Under this transition method, we did not recast the prior period financial statements presented. We elected the transition package of three practical expedients, which among other things, allowed for the carryforward of historical lease classifications. We made an accounting policy election to not recognize assets or liabilities for leases with a term of less than 12 months and to account for all components in a lease arrangement as a single combined lease component for all of our then existing asset classes. In connection with the Merger, we acquired right-of-use assets that represent an additional asset class for computer equipment, for which we account for lease and nonlease components separately. The adoption of ASU 2016-02 resulted in the measurement and recognition of lease liabilities in the amount of $274.0 million and right-of-use assets in the amount of $236.0 million as of January 1, 2019. Lease liabilities were measured as the present value of remaining lease payments, and the corresponding right-of-use assets were measured at an amount equal to the lease liabilities adjusted by the amounts of certain assets and liabilities, such as prepaid rent and deferred lease obligations, that we previously recognized on the balance sheet prior to the initial application of ASU 2016-02. To calculate the present value of remaining lease payments, we elected to use an incremental borrowing rate based on the remaining lease term at transition. We adopted ASU 2014-09, "Revenues from Contracts with Customers (Topic 606)" as well as other clarifications and technical guidance issued by the FASB related to this new revenue standard ("ASC 606") and ASC Subtopic 340-40: "Other Assets and Deferred Costs - Contracts with Customers" ("ASC 340-40") on January 1, 2018. We elected the modified retrospective transition method, which resulted in a net increase to retained earnings of $51.0 million for the cumulative effect of applying the standard. The primary components of the cumulative-effect adjustment were changes in the accounting for certain costs to obtain customer contracts and the related income tax effects, which resulted in increases to other noncurrent assets and deferred income tax liabilities of $64.6 million and $15.6 million , respectively. Previously, we amortized these assets to expense over the related contract term. Under ASC 340-40, we now amortize these assets over the expected period of benefit, which is generally longer than the initial contract term. Under the new standard, we also capitalized certain costs that were not previously capitalized, including certain commissions and the related payroll taxes and certain costs incurred to fulfill a contract before the performance obligation has been satisfied, primarily compensation and related payroll taxes for employees engaged in customer implementation activities in our technology-enabled businesses. Prior to the adoption of ASC 606, we presented payments made to certain third parties, including payment networks, as a component of operating expenses. For periods beginning on and after January 1, 2018 , we present revenue net of these third-party payments. This change in presentation had the effect of reducing our revenues and operating expenses by the same amounts. As a result, revenues, cost of service and selling, general and administrative expenses were lower than the amounts that would have been presented if not for the effect of the new revenue accounting standard by $1,110.8 million , $1,042.9 million and $67.9 million , respectively, for the year ended December 31, 2018. The adoption of ASC 606 did not have a material effect on any other line items in our consolidated statement of income for year ended December 31, 2018 or on any other line items in our consolidated balance sheet as of December 31, 2018 and had no effect on our cash flows from operating activities, investing activities or financing activities included in our consolidated statement of cash flows for the year ended December 31, 2018. Recently issued pronouncements not yet adopted — In August 2018, the FASB issued ASU 2018-15, "Intangibles - Goodwill and Other - Internal-Use Software (Subtopic 350-40): Customer's Accounting for Implementation Costs Incurred in a Cloud Computing Arrangement that is a Service Contract (A Consensus of the FASB Emerging Issues Task Force)." ASU 2018-15 provides additional guidance on the accounting for costs of implementation activities performed in a cloud computing arrangement (i.e., hosting arrangement) that is a service contract. The new guidance amends the definition of a hosting arrangement and requires a customer in a hosting arrangement that is a service contract to capitalize certain implementation costs as if the arrangement was an internal-use software project. The amendments in this update also provide additional presentation and disclosure requirements, including requirements to disclose the nature of an entity’s hosting arrangements that are service contracts, as well as quantitative information about capitalized implementation costs and related amortization expense. The guidance will become effective for us on January 1, 2020. We expect to apply the guidance prospectively to all implementation costs incurred after the date of adoption. We have completed our evaluation of the effect of ASU 2018-15 on our consolidated financial statements and internal controls. We do not expect the adoption of this standard to have a material effect on our consolidated financial statements. We have historically capitalized implementation costs associated with cloud computing arrangements that are service contracts following the guidance in Subtopic 350-40 and expect to continue to do so pursuant to the clarifications provided in the new guidance. We expect to amortize deferred implementation costs to expense on a straight-line basis over the term of the applicable hosting arrangement, and we will enhance our accounting processes and internal controls to meet the new disclosure requirements. In June 2016, the FASB issued ASU 2016-13, "Financial Instruments - Credit Losses (Topic 326): Measurement of Credit Losses on Financial Instruments ." The amendments in this update change how companies measure and recognize credit impairment for many financial instruments measured at amortized cost. The new model for current expected credit losses ("CECL") will require us to recognize an estimate of credit losses expected to occur over the remaining life of the financial instruments that are within the scope of the update, including accounts receivable and certain settlement processing assets, each of which are short-term in nature. Under current GAAP, credit losses on these financial instruments are not recognized until their occurrence is deemed to be probable. The guidance will become effective for us on January 1, 2020. In general, the new guidance will require modified retrospective application to all outstanding financial assets that are within the scope of the update, with a cumulative-effect adjustment, if any, recorded to retained earnings as of the date of adoption. We are substantially complete with our evaluation of the effect of ASU 2016-13 on our consolidated financial statements. We do not expect adoption of this standard will have a material effect on our consolidated financial statements; however, it may require expanded qualitative disclosures about our financial assets and related allowance for credit losses, as well as new or modified internal controls. In December 2019, the FASB issued ASU 2019-12, "Income Taxes (Topic 740): Simplifying the Accounting for Income Taxes," which is intended to enhance and simplify various aspects of the accounting for income taxes. The amendments in this update remove certain exceptions to the general principles in Topic 740 related to the approach for intraperiod tax allocation, the methodology for calculating income taxes in an interim period and the recognition of deferred tax liabilities for outside basis differences. ASU 2019-12 also clarifies and amends existing guidance to improve consistent application of the accounting for franchise taxes, enacted changes in tax laws or rates and transactions that result in a step-up in the tax basis of goodwill. ASU 2019-12 is effective for annual and interim periods beginning after December 15, 2020, with early adoption permitted. We are evaluating the effect of ASU 2019-12 on our consolidated financial statements.
Revenue recognition	Revenue recognition — Pursuant to ASC 606, at contract inception, we assess the goods and services promised in our contracts with customers and identify a performance obligation for each promise to transfer to the customer a good or service that is distinct. In accordance with ASC 606, we recognize revenue when a customer obtains control of promised services. The amount of revenue recognized reflects the consideration to which we expect to be entitled to receive in exchange for these services. Merchant Solutions. Our customers in the Merchant Solutions segment contract with us for payment services, which we provide in exchange for consideration for completed transactions. Our payment solutions are similar around the world in that we enable our customers to accept card, electronic, check and digital-based payments. Our comprehensive offerings include, but are not limited to, authorization services, settlement and funding services, customer support and help-desk functions, chargeback resolution, payment security services, consolidated billing and statements and on-line reporting. In addition, we may sell or rent point-of-sale terminals or other equipment to customers. For our payment services obligation, the nature of our promise to the customer is that we stand ready to process transactions the customer requests on a daily basis over the contract term. Since the timing and quantity of transactions to be processed by us is not determinable, we view payment services to comprise an obligation to stand ready to process as many transactions as the customer requests. Under a stand-ready obligation, the evaluation of the nature of our performance obligation is focused on each time increment rather than the underlying activities. Therefore, we view payment services to comprise a series of distinct days of service that are substantially the same and have the same pattern of transfer to the customer. Accordingly, the promise to stand ready is accounted for as a single-series performance obligation. In order to provide our payment services, we route and clear each transaction through the applicable payment network. We obtain authorization for the transaction and request funds settlement from the card issuing financial institution through the payment network. When third parties are involved in the transfer of goods or services to our customer, we consider the nature of each specific promised good or service and apply judgment to determine whether we control the good or service before it is transferred to the customer or whether we are acting as an agent of the third party. To determine whether or not we control the good or service before it is transferred to the customer, we assess indicators including which party is primarily responsible for fulfillment and has discretion in determining pricing for the good or service, as well as other considerations. Based on our assessment of these indicators, we have concluded that our promise to our customer to provide our payment services is distinct from the services provided by the card issuing financial institutions and payment networks in connection with payment transactions. We do not have the ability to direct the use of and obtain substantially all of the benefits of the services provided by the card issuing financial institutions and payment networks before those services are transferred to our customer, and on that basis, we do not control those services prior to being transferred to our customer. As a result, upon adoption of ASC 606, we present our revenues net of the interchange fees retained by the card issuing financial institutions and the fees charged by the payment networks. The majority of our payment services are priced as a percentage of transaction value or a specified fee per transaction, depending on the card type. We also charge other per occurrence fees based on specific services that may be unrelated to the number of transactions or transaction value. Given the nature of the promise and the underlying fees based on unknown quantities or outcomes of services to be performed over the contract term, the total consideration is determined to be variable consideration. The variable consideration for our payment service is usage-based and, therefore, it specifically relates to our efforts to satisfy our payment services obligation. The variability is satisfied each day the service is provided to the customer. We directly ascribe variable fees to the distinct day of service to which it relates, and we consider the services performed each day in order to ascribe the appropriate amount of total fees to that day. Therefore, we measure revenues for our payment service on a daily basis based on the services that are performed on that day. Certain of our technology-enabled customer arrangements contain multiple promises, such as payment services, perpetual software licenses, software-as-a-service ("SaaS"), maintenance, installation services, training and equipment, each of which is evaluated to determine whether it represents a separate performance obligation. SaaS arrangements are generally offered on a subscription basis, providing the customers with access to the SaaS platform along with general support and maintenance services. Because these promised services within our SaaS arrangements are delivered concurrently over the contract term, we account for these promises as if they are a single performance obligation that includes a series of distinct services with the same pattern of transfer to the customer. In addition, certain installation services are not considered distinct from the SaaS and are recognized over the expected period of benefit. Once we determine the performance obligations and the transaction price, including an estimate of any variable consideration, we then allocate the transaction price to each performance obligation in the contract using a relative standalone selling price method. We determine standalone selling price based on the price at which the good or service is sold separately. If the standalone selling price is not observable through past transactions, we estimate the standalone selling price by considering all reasonably available information, including market conditions, trends or other company- or customer-specific factors. Substantially all of the performance obligations described above are satisfied over time. The performance obligations associated with equipment sales, perpetual software licenses and certain professional services are generally satisfied at a point in time when they are transferred to the customer. For certain other professional services that represent separate performance obligations, we generally use the input method and recognize revenue based on the number of hours incurred or services performed to date in relation to the total services expected to be required to satisfy the performance obligation. We satisfy the combined SaaS performance obligation by standing ready to provide access to the SaaS. Consideration for SaaS arrangements may consist of fixed or usage-based fees. Revenue is recognized over the period for which the services are provided or by directly ascribing any variable fees to the distinct day of service based on the services that are performed on that day. Issuer Solutions. Issuer Solutions segment revenues are derived from long-term contracts with financial institutions and other financial service providers. Issuer Solutions customer contracts may include multiple promises. Payment processing services revenues are generated primarily from charges based on the number of accounts on file, transactions and authorizations processed, statements generated and/or mailed, managed services, cards embossed and mailed, and other processing services for cardholders accounts on file. Most of these contracts have prescribed annual minimums, penalties for early termination, and service level agreements that may affect contractual fees if specific service levels are not achieved. Issuer Solutions revenues also include loyalty redemption services and professional services. To the extent a contract includes multiple promised services, we must apply judgment to determine whether promised services are capable of being distinct and are distinct in the context of the contract. If these criteria are not met, the promised services are combined and accounted for as a single performance obligation. Issuer Solutions customer contracts typically include an obligation to provide processing services to financial institutions and other financial services providers. We have determined that these processing services represent a stand-ready obligation comprising a series of distinct days of services that are substantially the same and have the same pattern of transfer to the customer. In many cases, Issuer Solutions arrangements may include additional performance obligations relating to loyalty redemption services and other professional services. Similar to processing services, we have determined that loyalty redemption services represent a stand-ready obligation comprising a series of distinct days of service that are substantially the same and have the same pattern of transfer to the customer. The performance obligations to provide processing services and loyalty redemption services include variable consideration. With respect to these performance obligations, we have determined that (a) the variable consideration relates specifically to our efforts to satisfy the performance obligation and (b) allocating the variable amount of consideration entirely to the performance obligation is consistent with the allocation objective when considering all of the performance obligations and payment terms in the contract. As a result, we allocate and recognize variable consideration in the period in which we have the contractual right to invoice the customer. Professional services representing performance obligations are satisfied over time. For professional services, we recognize revenue based on the labor hours incurred for time and materials projects or on a straight-line basis for fixed-fee projects. In some cases, we pay certain of our customers a signing incentive at contract inception or renewal. Consideration paid to customers is accounted for as a reduction of the transaction price and recognized as a reduction in revenues as the related services are transferred to the customer over the contract term. The deferred portion of consideration paid to customers is classified within other assets in our consolidated balance sheets. Business and Consumer Solutions. Business and Consumer Solutions segment revenues principally consist of fees collected from cardholders and fees generated by cardholder activity in connection with the programs that we manage. Customers are typically charged a fee for each purchase transaction made using their cards, unless the customer is on a monthly or annual service plan, in which case the customer is instead charged a monthly or annual subscription fee, as applicable. Customers are also charged a monthly maintenance fee after a specified period of inactivity. We also charge fees associated with additional services offered in connection with our accounts, including the use of overdraft features, a variety of bill payment options, card replacement, foreign exchange and card-to-card transfers of funds initiated through our call centers. Business and Consumer Solutions revenues include a stand-ready performance obligation to provide account access and facilitate purchase transactions. We have determined that we have a right to consideration from a customer in an amount that corresponds directly with the value to the customer of our performance completed to date. As a result, we recognize revenue in the amount to which we have a right to invoice. Revenues are recognized net of fees charged by the payment networks for services they provide in processing transactions routed through them. Revenue recognition prior to ASC 606. For periods prior to our adoption of ASC 606, we recognized revenue when services were performed. For arrangements with multiple elements, such as equipment, perpetual licenses, SaaS, maintenance, installation and training, we allocated consideration to each element based on the relative-selling-price method. In multiple element arrangements where more-than-incidental software elements were included, the entire amount of revenue under the arrangement was deferred until all elements were delivered or objective evidence of the fair value of the undelivered items was established.
Cash and cash equivalents	Cash and cash equivalents — Cash and cash equivalents include cash on hand and all liquid investments with a maturity of three months or less when purchased. We consider certain portions of our cash and cash equivalents to be unrestricted but not available for general purposes. The amount of cash that we consider to be available for general purposes does not include the following: (i) settlement-related cash balances, (ii) funds held as collateral for merchant losses ("Merchant Reserves") and (iii) funds held for customers. Settlement-related cash balances represent funds that we hold when the incoming amount from the card networks precedes the funding obligation to the merchant. Settlement-related cash balances are not restricted; however, these funds are generally paid out in satisfaction of settlement processing obligations the following day. Merchant Reserves serve as collateral to minimize contingent liabilities associated with any losses that may occur under the merchant agreement. We record a corresponding liability in settlement processing assets and settlement processing obligations in our consolidated balance sheet. While this cash is not restricted in its use, we believe that designating this cash as Merchant Reserves strengthens our fiduciary standing with financial institutions that sponsor us and is in accordance with guidelines set by the card networks. Funds held for customers and the corresponding liability that we record in "customer deposits" include amounts collected prior to remittance on our customers' behalf.
Accounts receivable, contract assets and contract liabilities	Accounts receivable, contract assets and contract liabilities — A contract with a customer creates legal rights and obligations. As we perform under customer contracts, our right to consideration that is unconditional is considered to be accounts receivable. If our right to consideration for such performance is contingent upon a future event or satisfaction of additional performance obligations, the amount of revenues we have recognized in excess of the amount we have billed to the customer is recognized as a contract asset. Contract liabilities represent consideration received from customers in excess of revenues recognized. Contract assets and liabilities are presented net at the individual contract level in the consolidated balance sheet and are classified as current or noncurrent based on the nature of the underlying contractual rights and obligations.
Allowance for doubtful accounts	Allowance for doubtful accounts — Accounts receivable balances are stated net of an allowance for doubtful accounts and billing adjustments. We record an allowance for doubtful accounts when it is probable that the accounts receivable balance will not be collected. Increases in the allowance for doubtful accounts are recorded as charges to bad debt expense and are reflected in selling, general and administrative expenses in our consolidated statements of income. Write-offs of uncollectible accounts are charged against the allowance for doubtful accounts. We record an allowance for billing adjustments for actual and potential billing discrepancies. Increases in the allowance for billing adjustments are recorded as a reduction of revenues in our consolidated statements of income and actual adjustments to invoices are charged against the allowance for billing adjustments.
Contract costs	Contract costs — Upon adoption of ASC 340-40, we capitalize costs to obtain contracts with customers, including employee sales commissions and fees to business partners. At contract inception, we capitalize such costs that we expect to recover and that would not have been incurred if the contract had not been obtained. In certain cases where costs related to obtaining customers are incurred after the inception of the customer contract, such costs are capitalized as the corresponding liability is recognized. We also capitalize certain costs incurred to fulfill our contracts with customers that (i) relate directly to the contract, (ii) are expected to generate resources that will be used to satisfy our performance obligation under the contract and (iii) are expected to be recovered through revenues generated under the contract. Capitalized costs to obtain and to fulfill contracts are included in other noncurrent assets. Contract costs are amortized to operating expense in our consolidated statements of income on a systematic basis consistent with the transfer to the customer of the goods or services to which the asset relates. Amortization of capitalized costs to obtain customer contracts is included in selling, general and administrative expenses, while amortization of capitalized costs to fulfill customer contracts is included in cost of services. We utilize a straight-line or proportional amortization method depending upon which method best depicts the pattern of transfer of the goods or services to the customer. We amortize these assets over the expected period of benefit, which, based on the factors noted above, is typically three to seven years. In order to determine the appropriate amortization period for capitalized contract costs, we consider a combination of factors, including customer attrition rates, estimated terms of customer relationships, the useful lives of technology we use to provide goods and services to our customers, whether future contract renewals are expected and if there is any incremental commission to be paid associated with a contract renewal. Costs to obtain a contract with an expected period of benefit of one year or less are recognized as an expense when incurred. We evaluate contract costs for impairment by comparing, on a pooled basis, the expected future net cash flows from underlying customer relationships to the carrying amount of the capitalized contract costs. Prior to our adoption of ASC 606, we capitalized certain customer acquisition costs that represented incremental, direct costs that were recoverable through merchant profitability. The capitalized customer acquisition costs were amortized using a proportional method over the initial term of the related merchant contract. The deferred customer acquisition cost asset was accrued over the first year of merchant processing, consistent with the build-up in the accrued buyout liability, as described below.
Property and equipment	Property and equipment — Property and equipment are stated at cost less accumulated depreciation and amortization. Depreciation and amortization are generally calculated using the straight-line method. Leasehold improvements are amortized over the lesser of the remaining term of the lease and the useful life of the asset.
Software	We develop software that is used to provide services to customers. Capitalization of internal-use software, primarily associated with operating platforms, occurs when we have completed the preliminary project stage, management authorizes the project, management commits to funding the project, it is probable the project will be completed and the project will be used to perform the function intended. The preliminary project stage consists of the conceptual formulation of alternatives, the evaluation of alternatives, the determination of existence of needed technology and the final selection of alternatives. Costs incurred during the preliminary project stage are expensed as incurred. Capitalized internal-use software is amortized over its estimated useful life, which is typically two to ten years, in a manner that best reflects the pattern of economic use of the assets.
Goodwill and Other intangible assets	Goodwill — We perform our annual goodwill impairment test as of October 1 each year. We test goodwill for impairment at the reporting unit level annually and more often if an event occurs or circumstances change that indicate the fair value of a reporting unit is below its carrying amount. We have the option of performing a qualitative assessment of impairment to determine whether any further quantitative assessment for impairment is necessary. The option of whether or not to perform a qualitative assessment is made annually and may vary by reporting unit. Factors we consider in the qualitative assessment include general macroeconomic conditions, industry and market conditions, cost factors, overall financial performance of our reporting units, events or changes affecting the composition or carrying amount of the net assets of our reporting units, sustained decrease in our share price, and other relevant entity-specific events. If we elect to bypass the qualitative assessment or if we determine, on the basis of qualitative factors, that the fair value of the reporting unit is more likely than not less than the carrying amount, a quantitative test would be required. Prior to the Merger, our reporting units consisted of: North America Payments, Integrated Solutions and Vertical Markets, United Kingdom, Asia-Pacific, Central and Eastern Europe, Russia and Spain. As of October 1, 2019 , we elected to perform a quantitative assessment of impairment for each of these reporting units, and determined on the basis of those assessments that the fair value of each reporting unit is greater than its respective carrying amount. As of October 1, 2019 , we had not allocated goodwill associated with the Merger to any of our reporting units; however, no indicators of impairment existed that warranted further evaluation of the provisional goodwill. After October 1, 2019 , as a result of the Merger, we realigned our reporting units based on new executive management and organizational structures consisting of: North America Payment Solutions, Integrated Solutions, Vertical Market Software Solutions, Europe Merchant Solutions, Spain Merchant Solutions, Asia-Pacific Merchant Solutions, Issuer Solutions and Business and Consumer Solutions. After the reorganization of our reporting units, we performed a quantitative assessment of impairment for each of our new reporting units, and determined on the basis of those assessments that the fair value of each reporting unit is equal to or greater than its respective carrying amount. We believe that the fair value of each of our reporting units is substantially in excess of its carrying amount, except for Issuer Solutions and Business and Consumer Solutions for which the respective carrying amounts approximate fair value since they were acquired in the Merger. Other intangible assets — Other intangible assets include customer-related intangible assets (such as customer lists, merchant contracts and distributor agreements), contract-based intangible assets (such as noncompete agreements, referral agreements and processing rights), acquired technologies, trademarks and trade names associated with business combinations. These assets are amortized over their estimated useful lives. The useful lives for customer-related intangible assets are determined based primarily on forecasted cash flows, which include estimates for the revenues, expenses, and customer attrition associated with the assets. The useful lives of contract-based intangible assets are equal to the terms of the agreements. The useful lives of amortizable trademarks and trade names are based on our plans to use the trademarks and trade names in the applicable markets. We use the straight-line method of amortization for our acquired technologies, trademarks and trade names and contract-based intangibles. Amortization for most of our customer-related intangible assets is determined using an accelerated method. The first step in determining the amortization expense for any period is that we calculate the expected cash flows for that period that were used in determining the acquisition-date fair value of the asset divided by the expected total cash flows over the estimated life of the asset. We then multiply that percentage by the initial carrying amount of the asset to arrive at the amortization expense for that period. If the cash flow patterns that we experience differ significantly from our initial estimates, we adjust the amortization schedule prospectively. These cash flow patterns are derived using certain assumptions and cost allocations due to a significant number of asset interdependencies that exist in our business. We believe that our accelerated method reflects the expected pattern of the benefit to be derived from the acquired customer relationships.
Impairment of long-lived assets	Impairment of long-lived assets — We regularly evaluate whether events and circumstances have occurred that indicate the carrying amount of property and equipment and finite-life intangible assets may not be recoverable. When factors indicate that these long-lived assets should be evaluated for possible impairment, we assess the potential impairment by determining whether the carrying amount of such long-lived assets will be recovered through the future undiscounted cash flows expected from use of the asset and its eventual disposition. The evaluation is performed at the asset group level, which is the lowest level of identifiable cash flows. If the carrying amount of the asset group is determined not to be recoverable, a write-down to fair value is recorded. Fair values are determined based on quoted market prices or discounted cash flow analysis as applicable. We regularly evaluate whether events and circumstances have occurred that indicate the useful lives of property and equipment and finite-life intangible assets may warrant revision.
Leases	Leases — We evaluate each of our lease and service arrangements at inception to determine if the arrangement is, or contains, a lease and the appropriate classification of each identified lease. A lease exists if we obtain substantially all of the economic benefits of, and have the right to control the use of, an asset for a period of time. Right-of-use assets represent our right to use an underlying asset for the lease term, and lease liabilities represent our obligation to make lease payments arising from the lease agreement. We recognize right-of-use assets and lease liabilities at the lease commencement date based on the present values of fixed lease payments over the term of the lease. Right-of-use assets may also be adjusted to reflect any prepayments made or any incentive payments received. Operating lease costs and depreciation expense for finance leases are recognized as expense on a straight-line basis over the lease term. We consider a termination or renewal option in the determination of the lease term when it is reasonably certain that we will exercise that option. Because our leases generally do not provide a readily determinable implicit interest rate, we use an incremental borrowing rate to measure the lease liability and associated right-of-use asset at the lease commencement date. The incremental borrowing rate used is a fully collateralized rate that considers our credit rating, market conditions and the term of the lease at the lease commencement date.
Income taxes	Income taxes — Deferred income taxes are determined based on the difference between the financial statement and tax bases of assets and liabilities using enacted tax laws and rates. A valuation allowance is provided when it is more likely than not that some portion or all of the deferred tax assets will not be realized. We periodically assess our tax exposures related to periods that are open to examination. Based on the latest available information, we evaluate our tax positions to determine whether the position will more likely than not be sustained upon examination by the U.S. Internal Revenue Service or other taxing authorities. If we cannot reach a more-likely-than-not determination, no benefit is recorded. If we determine that the tax position is more likely than not to be sustained, we record the largest amount of benefit that is more likely than not to be realized when the tax position is settled. We record interest and penalties related to unrecognized income tax benefits in interest and selling, general and administrative expenses, respectively, in our consolidated statements of income.
Derivative instruments	Derivative instruments — We may use interest rate swaps or other derivative instruments to manage a portion of our exposure to the variability in interest rates. Our objective in managing our exposure to fluctuation in interest rates is to better control this element of cost and to mitigate the earnings and cash flow volatility associated with changes in applicable rates. We have established policies and procedures that encompass risk-management philosophy and objectives, guidelines for derivative instrument usage, counterparty credit approval, and the monitoring and reporting of derivative activity. We do not use derivative instruments for speculation. At inception we formally designate and document instruments that qualify for hedge accounting of underlying exposures. When qualified for hedge accounting, these financial instruments are recognized at fair value in our consolidated balance sheets, and changes in fair value are recognized as a component of other comprehensive income (loss) and included in accumulated other comprehensive loss within equity in our consolidated balance sheets. Cash flows resulting from settlements are presented as a component of cash flows from operating activities within our consolidated statements of cash flows. We formally assess, both at inception and at least quarterly, whether the financial instruments used in hedging transactions are effective at offsetting changes in cash flows of the related underlying exposure. Fluctuations in the value of these instruments generally are offset by changes in the forecasted cash flows of the underlying exposures being hedged. This offset is driven by the high degree of effectiveness between the exposure being hedged and the hedging instrument. We designated each of our interest rate swap agreements as a cash flow hedge of interest payments on variable rate borrowings. See "Note 7 — Long-Term Debt and Lines of Credit" for more information about our interest rate swaps.
Fair value measurements	Fair value measurements — Fair value is defined as the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the reporting date. GAAP establishes a fair value hierarchy that categorizes the inputs to valuation techniques into three broad levels. Level 1 inputs utilize quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities. Level 2 inputs are based on other observable market data, such as quoted prices for similar assets and liabilities, and inputs other than quoted prices that are observable such as interest rates and yield curves. Level 3 inputs are developed from unobservable data reflecting our assumptions and include situations where there is little or no market activity for the asset or liability.
Fair value of financial instruments	Fair value of financial instruments —
Foreign currencies	Foreign currencies — We have significant operations in a number of foreign subsidiaries whose functional currency is the local currency. The assets and liabilities of subsidiaries whose functional currency is a foreign currency are translated into the reporting currency at the period-end rate of exchange. Income statement items are translated at the weighted-average rates prevailing during the period. The resulting translation adjustment is recorded as a component of other comprehensive income and is included in accumulated comprehensive income within equity in our consolidated balance sheets. Gains and losses on transactions denominated in currencies other than the functional currency are generally included in determining net income for the period. For the years ended December 31, 2019 , 2018 and 2017 , our transaction gains and losses were insignificant. Transaction gains and losses on intercompany balances of a long-term investment nature are recorded as a component of other comprehensive income and included in accumulated comprehensive income within equity in our consolidated balance sheets.
Earnings per share	Earnings per share — Basic earnings per share ("EPS") is computed by dividing reported net income attributable to Global Payments by the weighted-average number of shares outstanding during the period. Earnings available to common shareholders is the same as reported net income attributable to Global Payments for all periods presented. Diluted EPS is computed by dividing net income attributable to Global Payments by the weighted-average number of shares outstanding during the period, including the effect of share-based awards that would have a dilutive effect on earnings per share. All stock options with an exercise price lower than the average market share price of our common stock for the period are assumed to have a dilutive effect on EPS. During the years ended December 31, 2019 , 2018 and 2017 , there were no stock options that would have an antidilutive effect on the computation of diluted EPS.
Repurchased shares	Repurchased shares — We account for the retirement of repurchased shares using the par value method under which the repurchase price is charged to paid-in capital up to the amount of the original issue proceeds of those shares. When the repurchase price is greater than the original issue proceeds, the excess is charged to retained earnings. We use a last-in, first-out cost flow assumption to identify the original issue proceeds of the shares repurchased.

BASIS OF PRESENTATION AND SUM_3

BASIS OF PRESENTATION AND SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Accounting Policies [Abstract]
Schedule of Weighted Average Number of Shares Outstanding	The following table sets forth the computation of the diluted weighted-average number of shares outstanding for all periods presented: Years Ended December 31, 2019 2018 2017 (in thousands) Basic weighted-average number of shares outstanding 198,298 158,672 154,652 Plus: Dilutive effect of stock options and other share-based awards 836 599 876 Diluted weighted-average number of shares outstanding 199,134 159,271 155,528

ACQUISITIONS (Tables)

ACQUISITIONS (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Total System Services, Inc.
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Schedule of Preliminary Fair Value of Merger Consideration	The fair value of total purchase consideration was determined as follows (in thousands, except per share data): Shares of TSYS common stock issued and outstanding (including Single-Trigger Awards) 177,643 Exchange Ratio 0.8101 Shares of Global Payments common stock issued to TSYS shareholders 143,909 Price per share of Global Payments common stock $ 163.74 Fair value of common stock issued to TSYS shareholders (1) 23,563,568 Value of Replacement Awards attributable to purchase consideration 207,821 Cash paid to TSYS shareholders in lieu of fractional shares 1,352 Total purchase consideration transferred to TSYS shareholders 23,772,741 Repayment of TSYS' unsecured revolving credit facility (including accrued interest and fees) 702,212 Total purchase consideration $ 24,474,953 (1) Fair value of common stock issued to TSYS shareholders does not equal the product of shares of Global Payments common stock issued to TSYS shareholders and price per share of Global Payments common stock as presented in the table above due to the rounding of the number of shares in thousands.
Schedule of Recognized Identified Assets Acquired and Liabilities Assumed	The provisional estimated acquisition-date fair values of major classes of assets acquired and liabilities assumed as of December 31, 2019 , including a reconciliation to the total purchase consideration, were as follows (in thousands): Provisional Amounts at Acquisition Date Measurement- Period Adjustments Provisional Amounts at December 31, 2019 (in thousands) Cash and cash equivalents $ 446,027 $ (18 ) $ 446,009 Accounts receivable 443,783 (935 ) 442,848 Identified intangible assets 11,020,000 (40,000 ) 10,980,000 Property and equipment 695,560 (51,476 ) 644,084 Other assets 1,476,290 (1,465 ) 1,474,825 Accounts payable and accrued liabilities (594,558 ) (19,502 ) (614,060 ) Debt (3,295,284 ) (58 ) (3,295,342 ) Deferred income tax liabilities (2,843,643 ) 155,794 (2,687,849 ) Other liabilities (313,782 ) (633 ) (314,415 ) Total identifiable net assets 7,034,393 41,707 7,076,100 Goodwill 17,440,560 (41,707 ) 17,398,853 Total purchase consideration $ 24,474,953 $ — $ 24,474,953 The following table reflects the provisional estimated fair values of the identified intangible assets of TSYS and the respective weighted-average estimated amortization periods: Estimated Fair Values Weighted-Average Estimated Amortization Periods (in thousands) (years) Customer-related intangible assets $ 6,420,000 15 Contract-based intangible assets 1,800,000 18 Acquired technologies 1,810,000 7 Trademarks and trade names 950,000 11 Total estimated identified intangible assets $ 10,980,000 13
Schedule of Pro Forma Information	Year Ended December 31, 2019 Year Ended December 31, 2018 Actual Pro Forma Actual Pro Forma (in thousands) Total revenues $ 4,911,892 $ 7,854,282 $ 3,366,366 $ 7,359,631 Net income attributable to Global Payments $ 430,613 $ 711,658 $ 452,053 $ 510,795
SICOM
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Schedule of Recognized Identified Assets Acquired and Liabilities Assumed	The following table reflects the estimated fair values of the identified intangible assets of SICOM and the respective weighted-average estimated amortization periods: Estimated Fair Values Weighted-Average Estimated Amortization Periods (in thousands) (years) Customer-related intangible assets $ 104,900 14 Acquired technologies 65,312 6 Trademarks and trade names 11,202 5 Contract-based intangible assets 6,880 5 Total estimated acquired intangible assets $ 188,294 10 The estimated acquisition-date fair values of major classes of assets acquired and liabilities assumed, including a reconciliation to the total purchase consideration, were as follows: Provisional Amounts at December 31, 2018 Measurement- Period Adjustments Final (in thousands) Cash and cash equivalents $ 7,540 $ — $ 7,540 Property and equipment 5,943 (105 ) 5,838 Identified intangible assets 188,294 — 188,294 Other assets 22,278 (3 ) 22,275 Deferred income tax liabilities (48,448 ) 838 (47,610 ) Other liabilities (31,250 ) (100 ) (31,350 ) Total identifiable net assets 144,357 630 144,987 Goodwill 264,844 370 265,214 Total purchase consideration $ 409,201 $ 1,000 $ 410,201
AdvancedMD
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Schedule of Recognized Identified Assets Acquired and Liabilities Assumed	The estimated acquisition-date fair values of major classes of assets acquired and liabilities assumed, including a reconciliation to the total purchase consideration, were as follows: Provisional Amounts at December 31, 2018 Measurement- Period Adjustments Final (in thousands) Cash and cash equivalents $ 7,657 $ — $ 7,657 Property and equipment 5,672 — 5,672 Identified intangible assets 419,500 — 419,500 Other assets 11,958 (173 ) 11,785 Deferred income tax liabilities (98,979 ) 4,935 (94,044 ) Other liabilities (15,624 ) (23 ) (15,647 ) Total identifiable net assets 330,184 4,739 334,923 Goodwill 376,701 (4,739 ) 371,962 Total purchase consideration $ 706,885 $ — $ 706,885 The following table reflects the estimated fair values of the identified intangible assets of AdvancedMD and the respective weighted-average estimated amortization periods: Estimated Fair Values Weighted-Average Estimated Amortization Periods (in thousands) (years) Customer-related intangible assets $ 303,100 11 Acquired technologies 83,700 5 Trademarks and trade names 32,700 15 Total estimated identified intangible assets $ 419,500 10
ACTIVE Network
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Schedule of Recognized Identified Assets Acquired and Liabilities Assumed	The following table reflects the estimated fair values of the identified intangible assets and the respective weighted-average estimated amortization periods: Estimated Fair Values Weighted-Average Estimated Amortization Periods (in thousands) (years) Customer-related intangible assets $ 189,000 17 Acquired technologies 153,300 9 Trademarks and trade names 59,400 15 Contract-based intangible assets 8,845 3 Total estimated acquired intangible assets $ 410,545 13 The estimated acquisition-date fair values of major classes of assets acquired and liabilities assumed, including a reconciliation to the total purchase consideration, were as follows (in thousands): Cash and cash equivalents $ 42,913 Property and equipment 21,852 Identified intangible assets 410,545 Other assets 87,143 Deferred income taxes (27,640 ) Other liabilities (147,481 ) Total identifiable net assets 387,332 Goodwill 784,244 Total purchase consideration $ 1,171,576
Schedule of Disclosure of Business Combination	The following table summarizes the cash and noncash components of the consideration transferred on September 1, 2017 (in thousands): Cash consideration paid to ACTIVE Network stockholders $ 599,497 Fair value of Global Payments common stock issued to ACTIVE Network stockholders 572,079 Total purchase consideration $ 1,171,576

REVENUES (Tables)

REVENUES (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Revenue from Contract with Customer [Abstract]
Schedule of Disaggregation of Revenue	The following tables present a disaggregation of our revenues from contracts with customers by geography for each of our reportable segments: Year Ended December 31, 2019 Merchant Solutions Issuer Solutions Business and Consumer Solutions Intersegment Revenues Total (in thousands) Americas $ 3,240,233 $ 458,289 $ 227,440 $ (18,782 ) $ 3,907,180 Europe 614,747 146,365 — — 761,112 Asia Pacific 243,600 — — — 243,600 $ 4,098,580 $ 604,654 $ 227,440 $ (18,782 ) $ 4,911,892 Year Ended December 31, 2018 Merchant Solutions Issuer Solutions Business and Consumer Solutions Intersegment Revenues Total (in thousands) Americas $ 2,522,285 $ — $ — $ — $ 2,522,285 Europe 589,744 21,185 — — 610,929 Asia Pacific 233,152 — — — 233,152 $ 3,345,181 $ 21,185 $ — $ — $ 3,366,366 The following table presents a disaggregation of our Merchant Solutions segment revenues by distribution channel for the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018: 2019 2018 (in thousands) Direct: Relationship-led $ 2,218,559 $ 1,821,629 Technology-enabled 1,880,021 1,523,552 $ 4,098,580 $ 3,345,181
Schedule of Contracts with Customers	Supplemental balance sheet information related to contracts from customers as of December 31, 2019 and 2018 was as follows: Balance Sheet Location December 31, 2019 December 31, 2018 (in thousands) Assets: Capitalized costs to obtain customer contracts, net Other noncurrent assets $ 226,945 $ 194,616 Capitalized costs to fulfill customer contracts, net Other noncurrent assets 38,150 12,954 Liabilities: Contract liabilities, net (current) Accounts payable and accrued liabilities 193,405 146,947 Contract liabilities, net (noncurrent) Other noncurrent liabilities 35,272 8,595
Schedule of Remaining Performance Obligation	Estimated revenues expected to be recognized in the future related to performance obligations that are unsatisfied or partially unsatisfied at December 31, 2019 were as follows (in thousands): Years ending December 31, 2020 $ 883,415 2021 746,773 2022 552,741 2023 332,602 2024 176,181 2025-2029 267,368 Total $ 2,959,080

PROPERTY AND EQUIPMENT (Tables)

PROPERTY AND EQUIPMENT (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Property, Plant and Equipment [Abstract]
Schedule of Property and Equipment	As of December 31, 2019 and 2018 , property and equipment consisted of the following: Range of Depreciable Lives 2019 2018 (Years) (in thousands) Software 1-10 $ 828,249 $ 539,879 Equipment 1-20 522,921 337,589 Buildings 2-43 196,430 27,179 Leasehold improvements 2-40 117,593 73,298 Furniture and fixtures 1-10 82,941 45,346 Land 14,037 3,518 1,762,171 1,026,809 Less accumulated depreciation and amortization (615,104 ) (503,827 ) Work-in-progress 235,735 130,560 $ 1,382,802 $ 653,542

GOODWILL AND OTHER INTANGIBLE_2

GOODWILL AND OTHER INTANGIBLE ASSETS (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Goodwill and Intangible Assets Disclosure [Abstract]
Schedule of Goodwill and Intangible Assets	As of December 31, 2019 and 2018 , goodwill and other intangible assets consisted of the following: 2019 2018 (in thousands) Goodwill $ 23,759,740 $ 6,341,355 Other intangible assets: Customer-related intangible assets $ 9,238,728 $ 2,486,217 Acquired technologies 2,732,218 896,701 Contract-based intangible assets 1,974,429 178,391 Trademarks and trade names 1,239,471 289,588 15,184,846 3,850,897 Less accumulated amortization: Customer-related intangible assets 1,225,785 860,715 Acquired technologies 576,928 351,170 Contract-based intangible assets 82,225 67,160 Trademarks and trade names 145,253 83,234 2,030,191 1,362,279 $ 13,154,655 $ 2,488,618
Schedule of Goodwill	The following table sets forth the changes by reportable segment in the carrying amount of goodwill for the years ended December 31, 2019 , 2018 and 2017: Merchant Solutions Issuer Solutions Business and Consumer Solutions Total (in thousands) Balance at December 31, 2016 $ 4,779,802 $ 27,792 $ — $ 4,807,594 Goodwill acquired 784,668 — — 784,668 Effect of foreign currency translation 75,443 5,746 — 81,189 Measurement-period adjustments 30,541 — — 30,541 Balance at December 31, 2017 5,670,454 33,538 — 5,703,992 Goodwill acquired 698,870 — — 698,870 Effect of foreign currency translation (59,374 ) (1,709 ) — (61,083 ) Measurement-period adjustments (424 ) — — (424 ) Balance at December 31, 2018 6,309,526 31,829 — 6,341,355 Goodwill acquired 7,095,167 7,945,029 2,358,657 17,398,853 Effect of foreign currency translation 10,030 8,873 — 18,903 Measurement-period adjustments 629 — 629 Balance at December 31, 2019 $ 13,415,352 $ 7,985,731 $ 2,358,657 $ 23,759,740
Schedule of Expected Amortization Expense	The estimated amortization expense of acquired intangibles as of December 31, 2019 for the next five years, calculated using the currency exchange rate at the date of acquisition, if applicable, is as follows (in thousands): 2020 $ 1,249,281 2021 1,215,658 2022 1,202,279 2023 1,158,838 2024 1,102,224

LEASES (Tables)

LEASES (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Leases [Abstract]
Schedule of Lease Assets and Lease Liabilities	As of December 31, 2019 and January 1, 2019, right-of-use assets and lease liabilities consisted of the following: Balance Sheet Location December 31, 2019 January 1, 2019 (in thousands) Assets: Operating lease right-of-use assets: Real estate Other noncurrent assets $ 355,063 $ 231,720 Computer equipment Other noncurrent assets 80,427 — Other Other noncurrent assets 1,310 4,259 Total operating lease right-of-use-assets $ 436,800 $ 235,979 Finance lease right-of-use assets: Computer equipment Property and equipment, net $ 21,901 $ — Other Property and equipment, net 4,808 — 26,709 — Less accumulated depreciation: Computer equipment Property and equipment, net (2,190 ) — Other Property and equipment, net (234 ) — Total accumulated depreciation (2,424 ) — Total finance lease right-of-use assets 24,285 — Total right-of-use assets (1) $ 461,085 $ 235,979 Liabilities: Operating lease liabilities (current) Accounts payable and accrued liabilities $ 88,812 $ 37,339 Operating lease liabilities (noncurrent) Other noncurrent liabilities 397,488 236,697 Finance lease liabilities (current) Current portion of long-term debt 6,570 — Finance lease liabilities (noncurrent) Long-term debt 26,426 — Total lease liabilities $ 519,296 $ 274,036 (1) Approximately 82% of our right-of-use assets are located in the United States.
Schedule of Maturities of Lease Liablities	As of December 31, 2019 , maturities of lease liabilities were as follows: Operating Leases Finance Leases (in thousands) Years ending December 31, 2020 $ 106,787 $ 7,402 2021 99,196 7,157 2022 87,500 7,123 2023 58,073 6,728 2024 47,994 6,728 2025 and thereafter 177,119 203 Total lease payments (1) 576,669 35,341 Imputed interest (90,369 ) (2,345 ) Total lease liabilities $ 486,300 $ 32,996 (1) Total operating lease payments did not include approximately $64 million for operating leases that had not yet commenced at December 31, 2019 . We expect the lease commencement dates for these leases to occur in 2020 .
Schedule of Future Minimum Payments for Noncancelable Operating Leases	Future minimum payments at December 31, 2018 for noncancelable operating leases were as follows (in thousands): Years ending December 31: 2019 $ 50,095 2020 47,700 2021 40,035 2022 37,055 2023 33,298 2024 and thereafter 225,225 Total future minimum payments (1) $ 433,408 (1) Future minimum lease payments included approximately $70 million for operating leases that had not commenced at December 31, 2018. December 31, 2019 for purchase obligations were as follows (in thousands): Years ending December 31: 2020 $ 125,533 2021 89,198 2022 36,835 2023 30,843 2024 25,632 Thereafter 28,718 Total future minimum payments $ 336,759

LONG-TERM DEBT AND LINES OF C_2

LONG-TERM DEBT AND LINES OF CREDIT (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Debt Disclosure [Abstract]
Schedule of Debt	As of December 31, 2019 and 2018, long-term debt consisted of the following: December 31, 2019 December 31, 2018 (in thousands) Long-term Debt 3.800% senior notes due April 1, 2021 $ 760,996 $ — 3.750% senior notes due June 1, 2023 567,330 — 4.000% senior notes due June 1, 2023 572,522 — 2.650% senior notes due February 15, 2025 991,423 — 4.800% senior notes due April 1, 2026 820,623 — 4.450% senior notes due June 1, 2028 486,982 — 3.200% senior notes due August 15, 2029 1,234,843 — 4.150% senior notes due August 15, 2049 739,431 — Unsecured term loan facility 1,981,758 — Unsecured revolving credit facility 903,000 — Secured term loans — 4,426,243 Secured revolving credit facility — 704,000 Finance lease liabilities 32,996 — Other borrowings 33,597 — Total long-term debt 9,125,501 5,130,243 Less current portion 35,137 115,075 Long-term debt, excluding current portion $ 9,090,364 $ 5,015,168
Schedule of Maturities of Long-Term Debt	At December 31, 2019 , maturities of long-term debt (excluding finance lease liabilities) were as follows by year (in thousands): Years ending December 31, 2020 $ 28,512 2021 754,906 2022 50,038 2023 1,300,000 2024 2,653,000 2025 and thereafter 4,200,000 Total $ 8,986,456
Schedule of Derivative Instruments	The table below presents information about our derivative financial instruments as of December 31, 2019 and 2018 : Weighted-Average Fixed Rate of Interest at Range of Maturity Dates at Fair Values at December 31, Derivative Financial Instruments Balance Sheet Location December 31, 2019 December 31, 2019 2019 2018 (in thousands) Interest rate swaps (Notional of $250 million at December 31, 2019 and $750 million at December 31, 2018) Prepaid expenses and other current assets 1.34% July 31, 2020 $ 472 $ 3,200 Interest rate swaps (Notional of $550 million at December 31, 2018) Other noncurrent assets N/A N/A $ — $ 8,256 Interest rate swaps (Notional of $1,550 million at December 31, 2019 and $950 million at December 31, 2018) Other noncurrent liabilities 2.57% March 31, 2021 - December 31, 2022 $ 45,604 $ 14,601
Schedule of Derivative Instruments, Effect on Other Comprehensive Income (Loss)	The table below presents the effects of our interest rate swaps on the consolidated statements of income and comprehensive income for the years ended December 31, 2019 , 2018 and 2017 : Years Ended December 31, 2019 2018 2017 (in thousands) Net unrealized gains (losses) recognized in other comprehensive loss $ (90,238 ) $ (7,553 ) $ 4,549 Net unrealized losses (gains) reclassified out of other comprehensive loss to interest expense $ 2,257 $ (4,792 ) $ 5,673

ACCOUNTS PAYABLE AND ACCRUED _2

ACCOUNTS PAYABLE AND ACCRUED LIABILITIES (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Accounts Payable and Accrued Liabilities [Abstract]
Schedule of Accounts Payable and Accrued Liabilities	As of December 31, 2019 and 2018 , accounts payable and accrued liabilities consisted of the following: 2019 2018 (in thousands) Funds held for customers $ 392,375 $ 454,588 Compensation and benefits 266,967 117,739 Contract liabilities 193,405 146,947 Payment network fees 154,789 96,495 Trade accounts payable 148,084 76,229 Operating lease liabilities 88,812 — Interest 61,296 1,671 Income taxes payable 56,426 51,108 Miscellaneous taxes and withholdings 48,738 15,436 Third-party processing fees 28,041 24,987 Unclaimed property 26,331 24,369 Audit and legal fees 26,080 7,543 Settlement of common share repurchases 17,200 4,000 Current portion of accrued buyout liability (1) 14,817 14,011 Third-party commissions 13,641 24,998 Other 285,164 116,582 $ 1,822,166 $ 1,176,703 (1) The noncurrent portion of accrued buyout liability of $34.2 million and $59.4 million is included in other noncurrent liabilities on the consolidated balance sheets as of December 31, 2019 and 2018 , respectively.

INCOME TAX (Tables)

INCOME TAX (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]
Schedule of Components of Income Tax Expense (Benefit)	The income tax expense (benefit) for the years ended December 31, 2019 , 2018 and 2017 consisted of the following: Years Ended December 31, 2019 2018 2017 (in thousands) Current income tax expense (benefit): Federal $ 50,048 $ (20,984 ) $ 79,903 State 29,788 21,122 3,468 Foreign 90,895 79,320 67,851 170,731 79,458 151,222 Deferred income tax expense (benefit): Federal (79,813 ) (8,760 ) (266,869 ) State (29,326 ) (1,684 ) 9,678 Foreign 598 8,474 4,582 (108,541 ) (1,970 ) (252,609 ) $ 62,190 $ 77,488 $ (101,387 )
Schedule of Income before Income Tax, Domestic and Foreign	The following table presents income before income taxes for the years ended December 31, 2019 , 2018 and 2017 : Years Ended December 31, 2019 2018 2017 (in thousands) United States $ 60,000 $ 131,067 $ 29,692 Foreign 457,925 431,088 362,991 $ 517,925 $ 562,155 $ 392,683
Schedule of Effective Income Tax Rate Reconciliation	Our effective tax rates for the years ended December 31, 2019 , 2018 and 2017 differ from the federal statutory rate for those periods as follows: Years Ended December 31, 2019 2018 2017 Federal U.S. statutory rate 21.0 % 21.0 % 35.0 % Valuation allowance 4.6 1.4 (3.2 ) Foreign interest income not subject to tax (4.5 ) (1.7 ) (2.2 ) Tax credits (3.9 ) (0.5 ) (0.3 ) Foreign-derived intangible income deduction (2.7 ) (1.6 ) — Uncertain tax positions (2.6 ) (0.9 ) (0.5 ) Share-based compensation expense (2.5 ) (2.1 ) (4.2 ) State income taxes, net of federal income tax benefit 1.0 2.7 1.9 Foreign income taxes (0.7 ) (0.5 ) (12.0 ) Federal U.S. transition tax — (4.1 ) 16.2 Federal U.S. rate reduction — — (55.6 ) Other SAB 118 adjustments — (0.6 ) — Other 2.3 0.7 (0.9 ) Effective tax rate 12.0 % 13.8 % (25.8 )%
Schedule of Deferred Tax Assets and Liabilities	As of December 31, 2019 and 2018 , principal components of deferred tax items were as follows: 2019 2018 (in thousands) Deferred income tax assets: Lease liabilities $ 94,965 $ — Financial instruments 65,848 768 Share-based compensation expense 48,204 11,333 Accrued expenses 40,035 35,913 Foreign net operating loss carryforwards 37,818 10,833 Income tax credit carryforwards 37,057 3,102 Domestic net operating loss carryforwards 22,254 20,096 Basis difference - U.K. business 2,030 4,890 Other 28,460 13,036 376,671 99,971 Less: valuation allowance (72,042 ) (23,390 ) 304,629 76,581 Deferred tax liabilities: Acquired intangibles 2,963,695 522,636 Property and equipment 193,052 102,654 Partnership interests 108,220 — Right-of-use assets 83,023 — Other 95,988 28,188 3,443,978 653,478 Net deferred income tax liability $ 3,139,349 $ 576,897 The net deferred income taxes reflected on our consolidated balance sheets as of December 31, 2019 and 2018 are as follows: 2019 2018 (in thousands) Noncurrent deferred income tax asset $ 6,292 $ 8,128 Noncurrent deferred income tax liability 3,145,641 585,025 Net deferred income tax liability $ 3,139,349 $ 576,897
Summary of Valuation Allowance	Changes to our valuation allowance during the years ended December 31, 2019 , 2018 and 2017 are summarized below (in thousands): Balance at December 31, 2016 $ (16,611 ) Allowance for foreign net operating loss carryforwards (6,469 ) Allowance for domestic net operating loss carryforwards (3,793 ) Allowance for state credit carryforwards (685 ) Rate change on domestic net operating loss and capital loss carryforwards 3,868 Utilization of foreign income tax credit carryforward 7,140 Balance at December 31, 2017 (16,550 ) Allowance for foreign net operating loss carryforwards (7,979 ) Allowance for domestic net operating loss carryforwards 1,145 Allowance for state credit carryforwards (6 ) Balance at December 31, 2018 (23,390 ) Allowance for foreign net operating loss carryforwards (26,439 ) Allowance for foreign credit carryforwards (15,226 ) Allowance for state credit carryforwards (6,680 ) Allowance for domestic net operating loss carryforwards (307 ) Balance at December 31, 2019 $ (72,042 )
Schedule of Unrecognized Tax Benefits Roll Forward	A reconciliation of the beginning and ending amounts of unrecognized income tax benefits, excluding penalties and interest, for the years ended December 31, 2019 , 2018 and 2017 as follows: Years Ended December 31, 2019 2018 2017 (in thousands) Balance at the beginning of the year $ 21,197 $ 31,218 $ 17,916 Additions related to acquisitions 22,283 — 13,061 Reductions for income tax positions of prior years (14,235 ) (10,021 ) (7,285 ) Settlements with income tax authorities (2,583 ) — (449 ) Additions for income tax positions of prior years 1,803 — 411 Additions based on income tax positions related to the current year 1,206 — 7,537 Effect of foreign currency fluctuations on income tax positions — — 27 Balance at the end of the year $ 29,671 $ 21,197 $ 31,218

SHAREHOLDERS_ EQUITY (Tables)

SHAREHOLDERS’ EQUITY (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Equity [Abstract]
Schedule of Shares Repurchased and Retired	Information about shares repurchased and retired was as follows for the years ended December 31, 2019 , 2018 and 2017: Years Ended December 31, 2019 2018 2017 (in thousands, except per share amounts) Number of shares repurchased and retired 2,328 1,927 376 Cost of shares repurchased, including commissions $ 324,583 $ 212,196 $ 34,811 Average cost per share $ 139.42 $ 110.11 $ 92.51

SHARE-BASED AWARDS AND OPTIONS

SHARE-BASED AWARDS AND OPTIONS (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Share-based Payment Arrangement [Abstract]
Schedule of Compensation Cost , Allocation of Share-based Compensation Costs by Plan	The following table summarizes share-based compensation expense and the related income tax benefit recognized for our share-based awards and stock options: Years Ended December 31, 2019 2018 2017 (in thousands) Share-based compensation expense $ 89,634 $ 57,826 $ 39,095 Income tax benefit $ 20,519 $ 13,038 $ 13,849
Schedule of Changes in Non-Vested Restricted Stock Awards Activity	The following table summarizes the changes in unvested restricted stock awards and performance units for the years ended December 31, 2019 , 2018 and 2017 : Shares Weighted-Average (in thousands) Unvested at December 31, 2016 1,263 $49.55 Granted 899 79.79 Vested (858 ) 39.26 Forfeited (78 ) 59.56 Unvested at December 31, 2017 1,226 78.29 Granted 650 109.85 Vested (722 ) 60.08 Forfeited (70 ) 91.47 Unvested at December 31, 2018 1,084 108.51 Replacement Awards 894 163.74 Granted 784 142.26 Vested (781 ) 105.04 Forfeited (137 ) 124.30 Unvested at December 31, 2019 1,844 $149.96
Schedule of Share-based Compensation, Stock Options, Activity	The following table summarizes changes in stock option activity for the years ended December 31, 2019 , 2018 and 2017 : Options Weighted-Average Exercise Price Weighted-Average Remaining Contractual Term Aggregate Intrinsic Value (in thousands) (years) (in millions) Outstanding at December 31, 2016 759 $37.51 6.0 $24.5 Granted 124 79.45 Exercised (160 ) 23.50 10.1 Outstanding at December 31, 2017 723 47.79 6.4 37.9 Granted 103 114.70 Forfeited (22 ) 100.38 Exercised (206 ) 42.65 16.5 Outstanding at December 31, 2018 598 59.16 6.2 27.3 Replacement Awards 1,336 68.96 Granted 109 128.22 Forfeited (23 ) 110.13 Exercised (265 ) 33.99 28.8 Outstanding at December 31, 2019 1,755 $74.06 6.5 $190.3 Options vested and exercisable at December 31, 2019 1,167 $58.03 5.6 $145.3
Schedule of Share-based Payment Award, Stock Options, Valuation Assumptions	Fair value was estimated on the date of grant using the Black-Scholes valuation model with the following weighted-average assumptions: Years Ended December 31, 2019 2018 2017 Risk-free interest rate 1.72 % 2.60 % 1.99 % Expected volatility 31 % 29 % 30 % Dividend yield 0.04 % 0.04 % 0.06 % Expected term (years) 5 5 5

SUPPLEMENTAL CASH FLOW INFORM_2

SUPPLEMENTAL CASH FLOW INFORMATION (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Supplemental Cash Flow Information [Abstract]
Schedule of Supplemental Cash Flow Disclosures	Supplemental cash flow disclosures for the years ended December 31, 2019 , 2018 and 2017 are as follows: Years Ended December 31, 2019 2018 2017 (in thousands) Income taxes paid, net of refunds $ 146,739 $ 101,302 $ 97,002 Interest paid $ 206,562 $ 177,525 $ 154,200

NONCONTROLLING INTERESTS (Table

NONCONTROLLING INTERESTS (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Noncontrolling Interest [Abstract]
Schedule of Net Income Reconciliation	The following table presents the reconciliation of net income attributable to noncontrolling interests to comprehensive income attributable to noncontrolling interests for the years ended December 31, 2019 , 2018 and 2017 : Years Ended December 31, 2019 2018 2017 (in thousands) Net income attributable to noncontrolling interests $ 38,663 $ 32,614 $ 25,645 Foreign currency translation attributable to noncontrolling interests (2,725 ) (2,696 ) 13,807 Comprehensive income attributable to noncontrolling interests $ 35,938 $ 29,918 $ 39,452

ACCUMULATED OTHER COMPREHENSI_2

ACCUMULATED OTHER COMPREHENSIVE LOSS (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Equity [Abstract]
Schedule of Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss)	The changes in the accumulated balances for each component of other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax, were as follows for the years ended December 31, 2019 , 2018 and 2017 : Foreign Currency Translation Net Unrealized Gains (Losses) on Hedging Activities Other Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss (in thousands) Balance at December 31, 2016 $ (318,450 ) $ (640 ) $ (3,627 ) $ (322,717 ) Other comprehensive income (loss) 132,594 7,639 (660 ) 139,573 Balance at December 31, 2017 (185,856 ) 6,999 (4,287 ) (183,144 ) Cumulative effect of adoption of new accounting standards (1,843 ) — — (1,843 ) Other comprehensive income (loss) (116,575 ) (9,373 ) 760 (125,188 ) Balance at December 31, 2018 (304,274 ) (2,374 ) (3,527 ) (310,175 ) Other comprehensive income (loss) 62,375 (66,945 ) 4,174 (396 ) Balance at December 31, 2019 $ (241,899 ) $ (69,319 ) $ 647 $ (310,571 )

SEGMENT INFORMATION (Tables)

SEGMENT INFORMATION (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Segment Reporting [Abstract]
Schedule of Segment Reporting Information	Information on segments and reconciliations to consolidated revenues, consolidated operating income and consolidated depreciation and amortization are as follows: Years Ended December 31, 2019 2018 2017 (in thousands) Revenues (1)(2) : Merchant Solutions $ 4,098,580 $ 3,345,181 $ 3,955,988 Issuer Solutions 604,654 21,185 19,175 Business and Consumer Solutions 227,440 — — Segment revenues 4,930,674 3,366,366 3,975,163 Less: intersegment revenues (18,782 ) — — Consolidated revenues $ 4,911,892 $ 3,366,366 $ 3,975,163 Operating income (loss) (2)(3) : Merchant Solutions $ 1,148,975 $ 940,157 $ 771,911 Issuer Solutions 82,172 14,084 12,710 Business and Consumer Solutions 19,473 — — Corporate (459,203 ) (217,186 ) (225,753 ) Consolidated operating income $ 791,417 $ 737,055 $ 558,868 Depreciation and amortization (2) : Merchant Solutions $ 677,196 $ 516,731 $ 444,100 Issuer Solutions 157,799 710 647 Business and Consumer Solutions 34,914 — — Corporate 8,426 5,372 6,404 Consolidated depreciation and amortization $ 878,335 $ 522,813 $ 451,151 (1) As more fully described in "Note 1—Basis of Presentation and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies" and "Note 3 —Revenues" we adopted a new revenue accounting standard on January 1, 2018 that resulted in revenue being presented net of certain fees that we pay to third parties, including payment networks. This change in presentation affected our reported revenues and operating expenses for all periods after the year ended December 31, 2017 by the same amount and had no effect on operating income. (2) Revenues, operating income and depreciation and amortization reflect the effects of acquired businesses from the respective dates of acquisition. For further discussion, see "Note 2 —Acquisitions." (3) During the year ended December 31, 2019 , operating income for our Merchant Solutions segment reflected the effect of acquisition and integration expenses of $56.1 million . Operating loss for Corporate included acquisition and integration expenses of $199.5 million , $56.1 million and $94.6 million , respectively, during the years ended December 31, 2019 , 2018 and 2017 . Acquisition and integration expenses for 2019 were primarily related to the Merger.
Schedule of Long-Lived Assets by Geographic Regions	Long-lived assets, excluding goodwill and other intangible assets, by location as of December 31, 2019 and 2018 were as follows: 2019 2018 (in thousands) United States $ 950,567 $ 516,449 Foreign countries 432,235 137,093 $ 1,382,802 $ 653,542

COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES (

COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]
Schedule of Future Minimum Lease Payments for All Noncancelable Leases	Future minimum payments at December 31, 2018 for noncancelable operating leases were as follows (in thousands): Years ending December 31: 2019 $ 50,095 2020 47,700 2021 40,035 2022 37,055 2023 33,298 2024 and thereafter 225,225 Total future minimum payments (1) $ 433,408 (1) Future minimum lease payments included approximately $70 million for operating leases that had not commenced at December 31, 2018. December 31, 2019 for purchase obligations were as follows (in thousands): Years ending December 31: 2020 $ 125,533 2021 89,198 2022 36,835 2023 30,843 2024 25,632 Thereafter 28,718 Total future minimum payments $ 336,759

QUARTERLY CONSOLIDATED FINANC_2

QUARTERLY CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL INFORMATION (UNAUDITED) (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Quarterly Financial Information Disclosure [Abstract]
Schedule of Quarterly Financial Information	Summarized quarterly results for the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018 were as follows: Quarters Ended March 31, 2019 June 30, 2019 September 30, 2019 December 31, 2019 (in thousands, except per share data) Revenues $ 883,039 $ 935,152 $ 1,105,941 $ 1,987,760 Operating income 199,492 221,726 174,037 196,162 Net income 119,205 130,039 105,731 114,301 Net income attributable to Global Payments 112,341 120,458 95,044 102,770 Basic earnings per share attributable to Global Payments 0.71 0.77 0.54 0.34 Diluted earnings per share attributable to Global Payments 0.71 0.77 0.54 0.34 Quarters Ended March 31, 2018 June 30, 2018 September 30, 2018 December 31, 2018 (in thousands, except per share data) Revenues $ 794,977 $ 833,164 $ 857,670 $ 880,555 Operating income 156,170 190,737 223,162 166,986 Net income 97,586 117,729 186,029 83,323 Net income attributable to Global Payments 91,399 109,069 176,370 75,215 Basic earnings per share attributable to Global Payments 0.57 0.69 1.12 0.48 Diluted earnings per share attributable to Global Payments 0.57 0.68 1.11 0.47

BASIS OF PRESENTATION AND SUM_4

BASIS OF PRESENTATION AND SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES - Narrative (Details)	Sep. 18, 2019USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2019USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2019USD ($)	Jun. 30, 2019USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2019USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2018USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2018USD ($)	Jun. 30, 2018USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2018USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2019USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2019USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2019USD ($)shares	Dec. 31, 2019USD ($)segment	Dec. 31, 2019USD ($)reporting_units	Dec. 31, 2018USD ($)shares	Dec. 31, 2017USD ($)shares	Jan. 01, 2019USD ($)	Jan. 01, 2018USD ($)
Product Information [Line Items]
Number of reportable segments													3	3
Total lease liabilities		$ 486,300,000								$ 486,300,000	$ 486,300,000	$ 486,300,000	$ 486,300,000	$ 486,300,000
Total operating lease right-of-use-assets			$ 436,800,000														$ 235,979,000
Retained earnings		2,333,011,000				$ 2,066,415,000				2,333,011,000	2,333,011,000	2,333,011,000	2,333,011,000	2,333,011,000	$ 2,066,415,000
Other noncurrent assets		1,810,225,000				362,923,000				1,810,225,000	1,810,225,000	1,810,225,000	1,810,225,000	1,810,225,000	362,923,000
Deferred income taxes		3,145,641,000				585,025,000				$ 3,145,641,000	3,145,641,000	$ 3,145,641,000	$ 3,145,641,000	$ 3,145,641,000	585,025,000
Revenues		$ 1,987,760,000	$ 1,105,941,000	$ 935,152,000	$ 883,039,000	$ 880,555,000	$ 857,670,000	$ 833,164,000	$ 794,977,000		4,911,892,000				3,366,366,000	$ 3,975,163,000
Cost of service											2,073,803,000				1,095,014,000	1,928,037,000
Selling, general and administrative expenses											2,046,672,000				$ 1,534,297,000	$ 1,488,258,000
Goodwill impairment											0
Buyout of relationship managers and sales managers commissions, fixed multiple period										12 months
Antidilutive securities excluded from computation of earnings per share (shares) | shares												0			0	0
Accounting Standards Update 2016-02
Product Information [Line Items]
Total lease liabilities																	274,000,000
Total operating lease right-of-use-assets																	$ 236,000,000
Difference between Revenue Guidance in Effect before and after Topic 606 | Accounting Standards Update 2014-09
Product Information [Line Items]
Retained earnings																		$ 51,000,000
Other noncurrent assets																		64,600,000
Deferred income taxes																		$ 15,600,000
Revenues											1,110,800,000
Cost of service											1,042,900,000
Selling, general and administrative expenses											$ 67,900,000
Total System Services, Inc.
Product Information [Line Items]
Total purchase consideration	$ 24,474,953,000
Minimum
Product Information [Line Items]
Amortization period of capitalized contract costs		3 years								3 years	3 years	3 years	3 years	3 years
Minimum | Internal-Use Software
Product Information [Line Items]
Estimated useful life										2 years
Maximum
Product Information [Line Items]
Amortization period of capitalized contract costs		7 years								7 years	7 years	7 years	7 years	7 years
Maximum | Internal-Use Software
Product Information [Line Items]
Estimated useful life										10 years

BASIS OF PRESENTATION AND SUM_5

BASIS OF PRESENTATION AND SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES - Earnings Per Share (Details) - shares shares in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Accounting Policies [Abstract]
Basic weighted-average number of shares outstanding (shares)	198,298	158,672	154,652
Plus: Dilutive effect of stock options and other share-based awards (shares)	836	599	876
Diluted weighted-average number of shares outstanding (shares)	199,134	159,271	155,528

ACQUISITIONS - Narrative (Detai

ACQUISITIONS - Narrative (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Sep. 18, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Oct. 17, 2018	Sep. 04, 2018	Sep. 01, 2017	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2019	Sep. 30, 2019	Jun. 30, 2019	Mar. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Sep. 30, 2018	Jun. 30, 2018	Mar. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Goodwill		$ 6,341,355				$ 23,759,740	$ 23,759,740				$ 6,341,355				$ 23,759,740	$ 6,341,355
Goodwill acquired															17,398,853	698,870	$ 784,668
Acquisition and integration expenses						135,300		$ 100,800	$ 14,200	$ 5,300	21,500	$ 8,200	$ 8,100	$ 18,300
Total System Services, Inc.
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Entity stock issued per acquiree share (shares)	0.8101
Number of equity awards of acquiree exchanged for corresponding acquirer equity awards (shares)	2,200,000
Total purchase consideration transferred to TSYS shareholders	$ 23,772,741
Business Combination, Provisional Information, Initial Accounting Incomplete, Adjustment, Identifiable Assets							41,707
Cash consideration paid to acquire business	1,352
Measurement period adjustment to identified intangible assets							(40,000)
Measurement period adjustment to deferred income tax liabilities							(155,794)
Measurement period adjustment to goodwill							(41,707)
Goodwill	17,440,560					17,398,853	17,398,853								17,398,853
Goodwill acquired	17,400,000
Total purchase consideration	$ 24,474,953
Equity interest issued (shares)	143,909,000
Revenue of acquiree															1,215,000
Operating income (loss) of acquiree															78,700
Acquisition and integration expenses															68,900	150,000
AdvancedMD
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Business Combination, Provisional Information, Initial Accounting Incomplete, Adjustment, Identifiable Assets															4,739
Cash consideration paid to acquire business				$ 706,900
Measurement period adjustment to identified intangible assets															0
Measurement period adjustment to deferred income tax liabilities															(4,935)
Measurement period adjustment to goodwill															(4,739)
Goodwill		376,701				371,962	371,962				376,701				371,962	376,701
Goodwill acquired		372,000
SICOM
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Business Combination, Provisional Information, Initial Accounting Incomplete, Adjustment, Identifiable Assets															630
Cash consideration paid to acquire business			$ 410,200
Measurement period adjustment to identified intangible assets															0
Measurement period adjustment to deferred income tax liabilities															(838)
Measurement period adjustment to goodwill															370
Goodwill		264,844				$ 265,214	$ 265,214				$ 264,844				265,214	$ 264,844
Goodwill acquired		265,200
Expected tax deductible amount of goodwill acquired			40,000
SICOM | Investment in Acquired Company | Director
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Related party transaction			$ 1,100
ACTIVE Network
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Cash consideration paid to acquire business					$ 599,497
Goodwill acquired		784,244			784,200
Total purchase consideration		$ 1,171,576			$ 1,171,576
Equity interest issued (shares)					6,357,509
Deductible amount of goodwill (as a percent)					80.00%
Merchant Solutions | Total System Services, Inc.
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Goodwill acquired															7,100,000
Issuer Solutions | Total System Services, Inc.
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Goodwill acquired															7,900,000
Business and Consumer Solutions | Total System Services, Inc.
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Goodwill acquired															$ 2,400,000

ACQUISITIONS - Total Considerat

ACQUISITIONS - Total Consideration Transferred (Details) - Total System Services, Inc. $ / shares in Units, $ in Thousands	Sep. 18, 2019USD ($)$ / sharesshares
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Shares of TSYS common stock issued and outstanding (including Single-Trigger Awards) (Shares) | shares	177,643,000
Exchange Ratio (Shares) | shares	0.8101
Shares of Global Payments common stock issued to TSYS shareholders (shares) | shares	143,909,000
Price per share of Global Payments common stock (USD per share) | $ / shares	$ 163.74
Fair value of common stock issued to TSYS shareholders	$ 23,563,568
Value of Replacement Awards attributable to purchase consideration	207,821
Cash paid to TSYS shareholders in lieu of fractional shares	1,352
Total purchase consideration transferred to TSYS shareholders	23,772,741
Repayment of TSYS' unsecured revolving credit facility (including accrued interest and fees)	702,212
Total purchase consideration	$ 24,474,953

ACQUISITIONS - Assets Acquired

ACQUISITIONS - Assets Acquired and Liabilities Assumed (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2019	Sep. 18, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Sep. 04, 2018	Sep. 01, 2017
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Goodwill	$ 23,759,740	$ 23,759,740		$ 6,341,355
Total System Services, Inc.
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Cash and cash equivalents	446,009	446,009	$ 446,027
Accounts receivable	442,848	442,848	443,783
Identified intangible assets	10,980,000	10,980,000	11,020,000
Property and equipment	644,084	644,084	695,560
Other assets	1,474,825	1,474,825	1,476,290
Accounts payable and accrued liabilities	(614,060)	(614,060)	(594,558)
Debt	(3,295,342)	(3,295,342)	(3,295,284)
Deferred income tax liabilities	(2,687,849)	(2,687,849)	(2,843,643)
Other liabilities	(314,415)	(314,415)	(313,782)
Total identifiable net assets	7,076,100	7,076,100	7,034,393
Goodwill	17,398,853	17,398,853	17,440,560
Total purchase consideration	24,474,953	24,474,953	$ 24,474,953
Measurement- Period Adjustments
Cash and cash equivalents	(18)
Accounts receivable	(935)
Identified intangible assets	(40,000)
Property and equipment	(51,476)
Other assets	(1,465)
Accounts payable and accrued liabilities	(19,502)
Debt	(58)
Deferred income tax liabilities	155,794
Other liabilities	(633)
Total identifiable net assets	41,707
Goodwill	(41,707)
Total purchase consideration	0
SICOM
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Cash and cash equivalents	7,540	7,540		7,540
Identified intangible assets	188,294	188,294		188,294	$ 188,294
Property and equipment	5,838	5,838		5,943
Other assets	22,275	22,275		22,278
Deferred income tax liabilities	(47,610)	(47,610)		(48,448)
Other liabilities	(31,350)	(31,350)		(31,250)
Total identifiable net assets	144,987	144,987		144,357
Goodwill	265,214	265,214		264,844
Total purchase consideration	410,201	410,201		409,201
Measurement- Period Adjustments
Cash and cash equivalents		0
Identified intangible assets		0
Property and equipment		(105)
Other assets		(3)
Deferred income tax liabilities		838
Other liabilities		(100)
Total identifiable net assets		630
Goodwill		370
Total purchase consideration		1,000
AdvancedMD
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Cash and cash equivalents	7,657	7,657		7,657
Identified intangible assets	419,500	419,500		419,500	$ 419,500
Property and equipment	5,672	5,672		5,672
Other assets	11,785	11,785		11,958
Deferred income tax liabilities	(94,044)	(94,044)		(98,979)
Other liabilities	(15,647)	(15,647)		(15,624)
Total identifiable net assets	334,923	334,923		330,184
Goodwill	371,962	371,962		376,701
Total purchase consideration	706,885	706,885		$ 706,885
Measurement- Period Adjustments
Cash and cash equivalents		0
Identified intangible assets		0
Property and equipment		0
Other assets		(173)
Deferred income tax liabilities		4,935
Other liabilities		(23)
Total identifiable net assets		4,739
Goodwill		(4,739)
Total purchase consideration		0
ACTIVE Network
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Cash and cash equivalents	42,913	42,913
Identified intangible assets	410,545	410,545				$ 410,545
Property and equipment	21,852	21,852
Other assets	87,143	87,143
Deferred income tax liabilities	(27,640)	(27,640)
Other liabilities	(147,481)	(147,481)
Total identifiable net assets	$ 387,332	$ 387,332

ACQUISITIONS - Fair Value of In

ACQUISITIONS - Fair Value of Intangible Assets (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Sep. 04, 2018	Sep. 01, 2017	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017	Sep. 18, 2019
Total System Services, Inc.
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Estimated Fair Values			$ 10,980,000			$ 11,020,000
Weighted-Average Estimated Amortization Periods			13 years
SICOM
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Estimated Fair Values	$ 188,294		$ 188,294	$ 188,294
Weighted-Average Estimated Amortization Periods	10 years
AdvancedMD
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Estimated Fair Values	$ 419,500		419,500	$ 419,500
Weighted-Average Estimated Amortization Periods	10 years
ACTIVE Network
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Estimated Fair Values		$ 410,545	$ 410,545
Weighted-Average Estimated Amortization Periods		13 years
Customer-related intangible assets
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Weighted-Average Estimated Amortization Periods			15 years 1 month 6 days	11 years 6 months	16 years 9 months 18 days
Customer-related intangible assets | Total System Services, Inc.
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Estimated Fair Values			$ 6,420,000
Weighted-Average Estimated Amortization Periods			15 years
Customer-related intangible assets | SICOM
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Estimated Fair Values	$ 104,900
Weighted-Average Estimated Amortization Periods	14 years
Customer-related intangible assets | AdvancedMD
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Estimated Fair Values	$ 303,100
Weighted-Average Estimated Amortization Periods	11 years
Customer-related intangible assets | ACTIVE Network
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Estimated Fair Values		$ 189,000
Weighted-Average Estimated Amortization Periods		17 years
Acquired technologies
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Weighted-Average Estimated Amortization Periods			6 years 10 months 24 days	6 years 2 months 12 days	8 years 9 months 18 days
Acquired technologies | Total System Services, Inc.
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Estimated Fair Values			$ 1,810,000
Weighted-Average Estimated Amortization Periods			7 years
Acquired technologies | SICOM
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Estimated Fair Values	$ 65,312
Weighted-Average Estimated Amortization Periods	6 years
Acquired technologies | AdvancedMD
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Estimated Fair Values	$ 83,700
Weighted-Average Estimated Amortization Periods	5 years
Acquired technologies | ACTIVE Network
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Estimated Fair Values		$ 153,300
Weighted-Average Estimated Amortization Periods		9 years
Trademarks and trade names
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Weighted-Average Estimated Amortization Periods			10 years 8 months 12 days	12 years 6 months	15 years
Trademarks and trade names | Total System Services, Inc.
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Estimated Fair Values			$ 950,000
Weighted-Average Estimated Amortization Periods			11 years
Trademarks and trade names | SICOM
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Estimated Fair Values	$ 11,202
Weighted-Average Estimated Amortization Periods	5 years
Trademarks and trade names | AdvancedMD
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Estimated Fair Values	$ 32,700
Weighted-Average Estimated Amortization Periods	15 years
Trademarks and trade names | ACTIVE Network
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Estimated Fair Values		$ 59,400
Weighted-Average Estimated Amortization Periods		15 years
Contract-based intangible assets
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Weighted-Average Estimated Amortization Periods			17 years 8 months 12 days	19 years 3 months 18 days	3 years
Contract-based intangible assets | Total System Services, Inc.
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Estimated Fair Values			$ 1,800,000
Weighted-Average Estimated Amortization Periods			18 years
Contract-based intangible assets | SICOM
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Estimated Fair Values	$ 6,880
Weighted-Average Estimated Amortization Periods	5 years
Contract-based intangible assets | ACTIVE Network
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Estimated Fair Values		$ 8,845
Weighted-Average Estimated Amortization Periods		3 years

ACQUISITIONS - Components of Co

ACQUISITIONS - Components of Consideration Transferred (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2018	Sep. 04, 2018	Sep. 01, 2017
AdvancedMD
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Cash consideration paid to Heartland stockholders		$ 706,900
ACTIVE Network
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Cash consideration paid to Heartland stockholders			$ 599,497
Fair value of Global Payments common stock issued to Heartland stockholders			572,079
Total purchase consideration	$ 1,171,576		$ 1,171,576

ACQUISITIONS - Acquisition Date

ACQUISITIONS - Acquisition Date Fair Values (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Business Combinations [Abstract]
Goodwill	$ 23,759,740	$ 6,341,355

ACQUISITIONS - - Pro Forma Info

ACQUISITIONS - - Pro Forma Information (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Sep. 30, 2019	Jun. 30, 2019	Mar. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Sep. 30, 2018	Jun. 30, 2018	Mar. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Actual
Revenues	$ 1,987,760	$ 1,105,941	$ 935,152	$ 883,039	$ 880,555	$ 857,670	$ 833,164	$ 794,977	$ 4,911,892	$ 3,366,366	$ 3,975,163
Net income attributable to Global Payments	$ 102,770	$ 95,044	$ 120,458	$ 112,341	$ 75,215	$ 176,370	$ 109,069	$ 91,399	430,613	452,053	$ 468,425
Total System Services, Inc.
Pro Forma
Total revenues									7,854,282	7,359,631
Net income attributable to Global Payments									$ 711,658	$ 510,795

REVENUES - Disaggregation of Re

REVENUES - Disaggregation of Revenue (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Sep. 30, 2019	Jun. 30, 2019	Mar. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Sep. 30, 2018	Jun. 30, 2018	Mar. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Revenue from contracts with customers	$ 1,987,760	$ 1,105,941	$ 935,152	$ 883,039	$ 880,555	$ 857,670	$ 833,164	$ 794,977	$ 4,911,892	$ 3,366,366	$ 3,975,163
Direct
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Revenue from contracts with customers									4,098,580	3,345,181
Relationship-led | Direct
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Revenue from contracts with customers									2,218,559	1,821,629
Technology-enabled | Direct
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Revenue from contracts with customers									1,880,021	1,523,552
Operating Segments
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Revenue from contracts with customers									4,930,674	3,366,366	3,975,163
Operating Segments | Merchant Solutions
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Revenue from contracts with customers									4,098,580	3,345,181	3,955,988
Operating Segments | Issuer Solutions
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Revenue from contracts with customers									604,654	21,185	19,175
Operating Segments | Business and Consumer Solutions
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Revenue from contracts with customers									227,440	0	0
Intersegment Revenues
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Revenue from contracts with customers									(18,782)	0	$ 0
Americas
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Revenue from contracts with customers									3,907,180	2,522,285
Americas | Operating Segments | Merchant Solutions
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Revenue from contracts with customers									3,240,233	2,522,285
Americas | Operating Segments | Issuer Solutions
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Revenue from contracts with customers									458,289	0
Americas | Operating Segments | Business and Consumer Solutions
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Revenue from contracts with customers									227,440	0
Americas | Intersegment Revenues
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Revenue from contracts with customers									(18,782)	0
Europe
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Revenue from contracts with customers									761,112	610,929
Europe | Operating Segments | Merchant Solutions
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Revenue from contracts with customers									614,747	589,744
Europe | Operating Segments | Issuer Solutions
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Revenue from contracts with customers									146,365	21,185
Europe | Operating Segments | Business and Consumer Solutions
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Revenue from contracts with customers									0	0
Europe | Intersegment Revenues
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Revenue from contracts with customers									0	0
Asia Pacific
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Revenue from contracts with customers									243,600	233,152
Asia Pacific | Operating Segments | Merchant Solutions
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Revenue from contracts with customers									243,600	233,152
Asia Pacific | Operating Segments | Issuer Solutions
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Revenue from contracts with customers									0	0
Asia Pacific | Operating Segments | Business and Consumer Solutions
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Revenue from contracts with customers									0	0
Asia Pacific | Intersegment Revenues
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Revenue from contracts with customers									$ 0	$ 0

REVENUES - Narrative (Details)

REVENUES - Narrative (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Revenue from Contract with Customer [Abstract]
Deferred revenue recognized	$ 137.2	$ 97.3

REVENUES - Supplemental balance

REVENUES - Supplemental balance sheet (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Contract liabilities, net (current)	$ 193,405	$ 146,947
Contract liabilities, net (noncurrent)	35,272	8,595
Obtain Contract
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Capitalized contract cost	226,945	194,616
Fulfill Contract
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Capitalized contract cost	$ 38,150	$ 12,954

REVENUES - Remaining Performanc

REVENUES - Remaining Performance Obligation (Details) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2019USD ($)
Revenue from Contract with Customer [Abstract]
Remaining performance obligation	$ 2,959,080
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction, Start Date [Axis]: 2020-01-01
Revenue from Contract with Customer [Abstract]
Remaining performance obligation	$ 746,773
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction [Line Items]
Expected timing of satisfaction	1 year
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction, Start Date [Axis]: 2022-01-01
Revenue from Contract with Customer [Abstract]
Remaining performance obligation	$ 552,741
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction [Line Items]
Expected timing of satisfaction	1 year
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction, Start Date [Axis]: 2023-01-01
Revenue from Contract with Customer [Abstract]
Remaining performance obligation	$ 332,602
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction [Line Items]
Expected timing of satisfaction	1 year
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction, Start Date [Axis]: 2024-01-01
Revenue from Contract with Customer [Abstract]
Remaining performance obligation	$ 176,181
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction [Line Items]
Expected timing of satisfaction	1 year
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction, Start Date [Axis]: 2025-01-01
Revenue from Contract with Customer [Abstract]
Remaining performance obligation	$ 267,368
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction [Line Items]
Expected timing of satisfaction	5 years

PROPERTY AND EQUIPMENT - Summar

PROPERTY AND EQUIPMENT - Summary (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property and equipment	$ 1,762,171	$ 1,026,809
Less accumulated depreciation and amortization	(615,104)	(503,827)
Property and equipment, net	1,382,802	653,542
Software
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property and equipment	828,249	539,879
Equipment
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property and equipment	522,921	337,589
Buildings
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property and equipment	196,430	27,179
Leasehold improvements
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property and equipment	117,593	73,298
Furniture and fixtures
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property and equipment	82,941	45,346
Land
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property and equipment	14,037	3,518
Work-in-progress
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property and equipment	$ 235,735	$ 130,560
Minimum | Software
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Range of useful lives in years	1 year	1 year
Minimum | Equipment
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Range of useful lives in years	1 year	1 year
Minimum | Buildings
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Range of useful lives in years	2 years	2 years
Minimum | Leasehold improvements
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Range of useful lives in years	2 years	2 years
Minimum | Furniture and fixtures
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Range of useful lives in years	1 year	1 year
Maximum | Software
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Range of useful lives in years	10 years	10 years
Maximum | Equipment
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Range of useful lives in years	20 years	20 years
Maximum | Buildings
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Range of useful lives in years	43 years	43 years
Maximum | Leasehold improvements
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Range of useful lives in years	40 years	40 years
Maximum | Furniture and fixtures
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Range of useful lives in years	10 years	10 years

PROPERTY AND EQUIPMENT - Narrat

PROPERTY AND EQUIPMENT - Narrative (Details) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019USD ($)
Software
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Write-off of capitalized software assets	$ 31.1

GOODWILL AND OTHER INTANGIBLE_3

GOODWILL AND OTHER INTANGIBLE ASSETS - Schedule of Goodwill and Intangible Assets (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Goodwill	$ 23,759,740	$ 6,341,355
Other intangible assets	15,184,846	3,850,897
Less accumulated amortization on intangible assets	2,030,191	1,362,279
Other intangible assets, net	13,154,655	2,488,618
Customer-related intangible assets
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Other intangible assets	9,238,728	2,486,217
Less accumulated amortization on intangible assets	1,225,785	860,715
Acquired technologies
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Other intangible assets	2,732,218	896,701
Less accumulated amortization on intangible assets	576,928	351,170
Contract-based intangible assets
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Other intangible assets	1,974,429	178,391
Less accumulated amortization on intangible assets	82,225	67,160
Trademarks and trade names
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Other intangible assets	1,239,471	289,588
Less accumulated amortization on intangible assets	$ 145,253	$ 83,234

GOODWILL AND OTHER INTANGIBLE_4

GOODWILL AND OTHER INTANGIBLE ASSETS - Narrative (Details) - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016
Goodwill [Line Items]
Accumulated impairment loss	$ 0	$ 0	$ 0	$ 0
Amortization expense of acquired intangibles	667,135,000	$ 377,685,000	$ 337,878,000
Customer-related intangible assets
Goodwill [Line Items]
Finite-lived Intangible Assets Acquired	$ 307,900,000
Intangible assets weighted average amortization periods	15 years 1 month 6 days	11 years 6 months	16 years 9 months 18 days
Acquired technologies
Goodwill [Line Items]
Intangible assets weighted average amortization periods	6 years 10 months 24 days	6 years 2 months 12 days	8 years 9 months 18 days
Contract-based intangible assets
Goodwill [Line Items]
Intangible assets weighted average amortization periods	17 years 8 months 12 days	19 years 3 months 18 days	3 years
Trademarks and trade names
Goodwill [Line Items]
Intangible assets weighted average amortization periods	10 years 8 months 12 days	12 years 6 months	15 years

GOODWILL AND OTHER INTANGIBLE_5

GOODWILL AND OTHER INTANGIBLE ASSETS - Goodwill Roll-Forward (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Goodwill [Roll Forward]
Goodwill, balance at beginning of period	$ 6,341,355	$ 5,703,992	$ 4,807,594
Goodwill acquired	17,398,853	698,870	784,668
Effect of foreign currency translation	18,903	(61,083)	81,189
Measurement-period adjustments	629	(424)	30,541
Goodwill, balance at end of period	23,759,740	6,341,355	5,703,992
Merchant Solutions
Goodwill [Roll Forward]
Goodwill, balance at beginning of period	6,309,526	5,670,454	4,779,802
Goodwill acquired	7,095,167	698,870	784,668
Effect of foreign currency translation	10,030	(59,374)	75,443
Measurement-period adjustments	629	(424)	30,541
Goodwill, balance at end of period	13,415,352	6,309,526	5,670,454
Issuer Solutions
Goodwill [Roll Forward]
Goodwill, balance at beginning of period	31,829	33,538	27,792
Goodwill acquired	7,945,029	0	0
Effect of foreign currency translation	8,873	(1,709)	5,746
Measurement-period adjustments	0	0	0
Goodwill, balance at end of period	7,985,731	31,829	33,538
Business and Consumer Solutions
Goodwill [Roll Forward]
Goodwill, balance at beginning of period	0	0	0
Goodwill acquired	2,358,657	0	0
Effect of foreign currency translation	0	0	0
Measurement-period adjustments		0	0
Goodwill, balance at end of period	$ 2,358,657	$ 0	$ 0

GOODWILL AND OTHER INTANGIBLE_6

GOODWILL AND OTHER INTANGIBLE ASSETS - Schedule of Future Intangible Asset Amortization Expense (Details) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2019USD ($)
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets, Net, Amortization Expense, Fiscal Year Maturity [Abstract]
2020	$ 1,249,281
2021	1,215,658
2022	1,202,279
2023	1,158,838
2024	$ 1,102,224

LEASES (Details)

LEASES (Details) $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2018USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2017USD ($)	Sep. 18, 2019USD ($)
Lessee, Lease, Description [Line Items]
Weighted-average remaining lease term of operating leases	7 years 4 months 24 days
Weighted-average remaining lease term of finance leases	5 years 1 month 6 days
Weighted-average discount rate of operating leases (as a percent)	4.10%
Weighted-average discount rate of finance leases (as a percent)	2.80%
Operating lease, cost	$ 85.9
Variable lease, cost	19.1
Cash paid for amounts included in the measurement of operating lease liabilities	70.4
Operating lease liabilities arising from obtaining new or modified right-of-use assets	$ 28.4
Operating lease liabilities acquired				$ 256.2
Finance lease liabilities acquired				$ 272
Rent expense on operating leases		$ 47.1	$ 44.7
Gain loss on disposition of business			$ 37.5
Operating lease, term of contract	20 years
Number of renewal options term	4
Operating lease, renewal term	5 years
Selling, General and Administrative Expenses
Lessee, Lease, Description [Line Items]
Operating lease, cost	$ 71
Cost of Sales
Lessee, Lease, Description [Line Items]
Operating lease, cost	$ 14.9

LEASES - Lease Assets and Liabi

LEASES - Lease Assets and Liabilities (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Sep. 30, 2019	Jan. 01, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Assets:
Total operating lease right-of-use-assets		$ 436,800	$ 235,979
Finance lease right-of-use assets:		26,709	0
Less accumulated depreciation:		(2,424)	0
Total finance lease right-of-use assets		24,285	0
Total right-of-use assets		461,085	235,979
Liabilities:
Operating lease liabilities	$ 88,812	88,812	37,339	$ 0
Operating lease liabilities (noncurrent)		397,488	236,697
Finance lease liabilities (current)		6,570	0
Finance lease liabilities (noncurrent)		26,426	0
Total lease liabilities		519,296	274,036
Proportion of operating lease right-of-use assets located in the United States (as a percent)	82.00%
Real estate
Assets:
Total operating lease right-of-use-assets		355,063	231,720
Computer equipment
Assets:
Total operating lease right-of-use-assets		80,427	0
Finance lease right-of-use assets:		21,901	0
Less accumulated depreciation:		(2,190)	0
Other
Assets:
Total operating lease right-of-use-assets		1,310	4,259
Finance lease right-of-use assets:		4,808	0
Less accumulated depreciation:		$ (234)	$ 0

LEASES - Maturities of Lease Li

LEASES - Maturities of Lease Liabilities (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Operating Leases
2020	$ 106,787
2021	99,196
2022	87,500
2023	58,073
2024	47,994
2025 and thereafter	177,119
Total lease payments	576,669
Imputed interest	(90,369)
Total lease liabilities	486,300
Finance Leases
2020	7,402
2021	7,157
2022	7,123
2023	6,728
2024	6,728
2025 and thereafter	203
Total lease payments	35,341
Imputed interest	(2,345)
Total lease liabilities	32,996	$ 0
Leases not yet commenced	$ 64,000	$ 70,000

LEASES - Future Minimum Payment

LEASES - Future Minimum Payments for Noncancelable Operating Leases (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Leases [Abstract]
2019		$ 50,095
2020		47,700
2021		40,035
2022		37,055
2023		33,298
2024 and thereafter		225,225
Total future minimum payments		433,408
Leases not yet commenced	$ 64,000	$ 70,000

LONG-TERM DEBT AND LINES OF C_3

LONG-TERM DEBT AND LINES OF CREDIT - Summary (Details) - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2019	Sep. 18, 2019	Aug. 14, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Total long-term debt	$ 9,125,501,000			$ 5,130,243,000
Long-term debt, excluding current portion	9,090,364,000			5,015,168,000
Finance lease liabilities	32,996,000			0
Less current portion	35,137,000			115,075,000
Unsecured Term Loan Facility
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Gross long-term debt	1,981,758,000			0
Unsecured Revolving Credit Facility
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Gross long-term debt	903,000,000			0
Secured Term Loans
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Gross long-term debt	0			4,426,243,000
Secured Revolving Credit Facility
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Gross long-term debt	0			704,000,000
Other Long-Term Debt
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Gross long-term debt	33,597,000			0
3.800% senior notes due April 1, 2021 | Senior Notes
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Gross long-term debt	$ 760,996,000			0
Face amount of debt instrument		$ 750,000,000
Stated interest rate (as a percent)	3.80%	3.80%
3.750% senior notes due June 1, 2023 | Senior Notes
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Gross long-term debt	$ 567,330,000			0
Face amount of debt instrument		$ 550,000,000
Stated interest rate (as a percent)	3.75%	3.75%
4.000% senior notes due June 1, 2023 | Senior Notes
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Gross long-term debt	$ 572,522,000			0
Face amount of debt instrument		$ 550,000,000
Stated interest rate (as a percent)	4.00%	4.00%
2.650% senior notes due February 15, 2025 | Senior Notes
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Gross long-term debt	$ 991,423,000			0
Face amount of debt instrument			$ 1,000,000,000
Stated interest rate (as a percent)	2.65%
4.800% senior notes due April 1, 2026 | Senior Notes
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Gross long-term debt	$ 820,623,000			0
Face amount of debt instrument		$ 750,000,000
Stated interest rate (as a percent)	4.80%	4.80%
4.450% senior notes due June 1, 2028 | Senior Notes
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Gross long-term debt	$ 486,982,000			0
Face amount of debt instrument		$ 450,000,000
Stated interest rate (as a percent)	4.45%	4.45%
3.200% senior notes due August 15, 2029 | Senior Notes
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Gross long-term debt	$ 1,234,843,000			0
Face amount of debt instrument			1,250,000,000
Stated interest rate (as a percent)	3.20%
4.150% senior notes due August 15, 2049 | Senior Notes
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Gross long-term debt	$ 739,431,000			$ 0
Face amount of debt instrument			$ 750,000,000
Stated interest rate (as a percent)	4.15%

LONG-TERM DEBT AND LINES OF C_4

LONG-TERM DEBT AND LINES OF CREDIT - Maturity Requirements on Outstanding Debt (Details) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2019USD ($)
Debt Disclosure [Abstract]
2020	$ 28,512
2021	754,906
2022	50,038
2023	1,300,000
2024	2,653,000
2025 and thereafter	4,200,000
Total	$ 8,986,456

LONG-TERM DEBT AND LINES OF C_5

LONG-TERM DEBT AND LINES OF CREDIT - Narrative (Details)	May 27, 2019USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2019USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2018USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2017USD ($)	Jun. 30, 2021	Sep. 30, 2019	Sep. 18, 2019USD ($)	Aug. 14, 2019USD ($)	Jul. 09, 2019USD ($)	Jun. 30, 2019USD ($)	Oct. 18, 2018USD ($)
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Amortization of discounts, premiums, and deferred debt issuance costs		$ 11,900,000	$ 11,700,000	$ 11,800,000
Interest expense		301,200,000	195,500,000	$ 174,300,000
Write-off of unamortized debt issuance sost		16,700,000
Senior Notes
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Unamortized discount		5,900,000
Fair value of debt instrument		$ 6,300,000,000
Senior Notes | Senior Unsecured Notes
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Face amount of debt instrument								$ 3,000,000,000
Senior Notes | 2.650% senior notes due February 15, 2025
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Face amount of debt instrument								1,000,000,000
Stated interest rate (as a percent)		2.65%
Senior Notes | 3.200% senior notes due August 15, 2029
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Face amount of debt instrument								1,250,000,000
Stated interest rate (as a percent)		3.20%
Senior Notes | 4.150% senior notes due August 15, 2049
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Face amount of debt instrument								$ 750,000,000
Stated interest rate (as a percent)		4.15%
Senior Notes | 3.800% senior notes due April 1, 2021
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Face amount of debt instrument							$ 750,000,000
Stated interest rate (as a percent)		3.80%					3.80%
Senior Notes | 3.750% senior notes due June 1, 2023
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Face amount of debt instrument							$ 550,000,000
Stated interest rate (as a percent)		3.75%					3.75%
Senior Notes | 4.000% senior notes due June 1, 2023
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Face amount of debt instrument							$ 550,000,000
Stated interest rate (as a percent)		4.00%					4.00%
Senior Notes | 4.800% senior notes due April 1, 2026
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Face amount of debt instrument							$ 750,000,000
Stated interest rate (as a percent)		4.80%					4.80%
Senior Notes | 4.450% senior notes due June 1, 2028
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Face amount of debt instrument							$ 450,000,000
Stated interest rate (as a percent)		4.45%					4.45%
Senior Notes and Secured Debt
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Unamortized debt issuance costs		$ 46,600,000
Secured Debt
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Unamortized debt issuance costs			37,400,000
Secured Debt | Term Loan A
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Face amount of debt instrument		1,500,000,000
Secured Debt | Term Loan A-2
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Face amount of debt instrument		1,370,000,000
Secured Debt | Term Loan B-2
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Unamortized discount		6,100,000
Face amount of debt instrument		1,140,000,000
Capitalized debt issuance costs		29,600,000
Secured Debt | Term Loan B-4
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Face amount of debt instrument											$ 500,000,000
Line of Credit
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Unamortized debt issuance costs			12,900,000
Unsecured Debt | Unsecured Revolving Credit Facility
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Unamortized debt issuance costs		17,600,000
Unsecured Debt | Bridge Facility
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Face amount of debt instrument	$ 2,750,000,000	0							$ 2,100,000,000
Expiration period of credit facility	364 days
Interest expense		11,700,000
Forward-Starting Interest Rate Swap
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Derivative settlement payments		48,300,000
Interest Rate Swap
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Reclassification of net unrealized losses (gains) on hedging activities to interest expense		20,200,000
Line of Credit
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Maximum borrowing capacity		882,600,000
Available borrowings under credit facility		981,800,000
Repayments of lines of credit		74,500,000	$ 70,600,000
Amount outstanding under lines of credit		$ 463,200,000
Weighted-average interest rate of short-term debt (as a percent)		3.16%
Average outstanding balance		$ 423,200,000
Forecast | Secured Debt | Term Loan A
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Rate of quarterly installment payments (as a percent)					2.50%
Term Loan Facility | Unsecured Debt
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Effective interest rate (as a percent)		3.20%
Term Loan Facility | Unsecured Debt | Five Year Senior Unsecured Credit Facility
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Face amount of debt instrument		$ 2,000,000,000
Revolving Credit Facility | Fourth Amendment
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Minimum leverage ratio		3.50
Minimum interest coverage ratio						3
Revolving Credit Facility | Secured Debt
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Face amount of debt instrument		$ 1,500,000,000
Revolving Credit Facility | Unsecured Debt
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Effective interest rate (as a percent)		3.00%
Revolving Credit Facility | Unsecured Debt | Five Year Senior Unsecured Credit Facility
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Face amount of debt instrument		$ 3,000,000,000
Capitalized debt issuance costs		12,800,000
Letter of Credit | Line of Credit
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Maximum borrowing capacity		250,000,000
Standby Letters of Credit | Line of Credit
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Available borrowings under credit facility		$ 2,077,500,000
Minimum | Revolving Credit Facility | Fourth Amendment
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Commitment fee (as a percent)		0.125%
Maximum | Revolving Credit Facility | Fourth Amendment
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Commitment fee (as a percent)		0.30%
Fed Funds Effective Rate Overnight Index Swap Rate | Term Loan Facility | Unsecured Debt | Five Year Senior Unsecured Credit Facility
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Basis spread on variable rate (as a percent)		0.50%
London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR) | Term Loan Facility | Unsecured Debt | Five Year Senior Unsecured Credit Facility
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Basis spread on variable rate (as a percent)		1.00%
Total System Services, Inc. | Senior Notes
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Amortization of discounts, premiums, and deferred debt issuance costs		$ 10,500,000
Fair value of debt instrument							$ 3,200,000,000
Unamortized premium							169,000,000
Total System Services, Inc. | Senior Notes | Senior Unsecured Notes
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Face amount of debt instrument							$ 3,000,000,000
Other noncurrent liabilities | Forward-Starting Interest Rate Swap
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Notional amount										$ 1,000,000,000

LONG-TERM DEBT AND LINES OF C_6

LONG-TERM DEBT AND LINES OF CREDIT - Derivative Financial Instruments (Details) - Interest Rate Swap - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Prepaid expenses and other current assets
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Weighted-average fixed rate of interest (as a percent)	1.34%
Interest rate swaps	$ 472	$ 3,200
Notional amount of derivative	250,000	750,000
Other noncurrent assets
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Interest rate swaps	$ 0	8,256
Notional amount of derivative		550,000
Other noncurrent liabilities
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Weighted-average fixed rate of interest (as a percent)	2.57%
Interest rate swaps	$ 45,604	14,601
Notional amount of derivative	$ 1,550,000	$ 950,000

LONG-TERM DEBT AND LINES OF C_7

LONG-TERM DEBT AND LINES OF CREDIT - Effect on Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Debt Disclosure [Abstract]
Net unrealized gains (losses) recognized in other comprehensive loss	$ (90,238)	$ (7,553)	$ 4,549
Net unrealized losses (gains) reclassified out of other comprehensive loss to interest expense	$ 2,257	$ (4,792)	$ 5,673

ACCOUNTS PAYABLE AND ACCRUED _3

ACCOUNTS PAYABLE AND ACCRUED LIABILITIES - Summary (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2019	Sep. 30, 2019	Jan. 01, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Accounts Payable and Accrued Liabilities [Abstract]
Funds held for customers	$ 392,375			$ 454,588
Compensation and benefits	266,967			117,739
Contract liabilities	193,405			146,947
Payment network fees	154,789			96,495
Trade accounts payable	148,084			76,229
Operating lease liabilities	88,812	$ 88,812	$ 37,339	0
Interest	61,296			1,671
Income taxes payable	56,426			51,108
Miscellaneous taxes and withholdings	48,738			15,436
Third-party processing fees	28,041			24,987
Unclaimed property	26,331			24,369
Audit and legal fees	26,080			7,543
Settlement of common share repurchases	17,200			4,000
Current portion of accrued buyout liability	14,817			14,011
Third-party commissions	13,641			24,998
Other	285,164			116,582
Accounts payable and accrued liabilities	1,822,166			1,176,703
Noncurrent accrued buyout liability	$ 34,200			$ 59,400

ACCOUNTS PAYABLE AND ACCRUED _4

ACCOUNTS PAYABLE AND ACCRUED LIABILITIES - Narrative (Details) - Heartland $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019USD ($)
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Share-based compensation expense associated with equity awards held by terminated employees	$ 57.1
Asset write-offs	17.3
Employee termination benefits obligations	$ 37.3

INCOME TAX - Narrative (Details

INCOME TAX - Narrative (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended	12 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2019	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Operating Loss Carryforwards [Line Items]
Income tax expense (benefit) allocated to noncontrolling interest		$ 12.3	$ 10.6	$ 8.6
Provisional income tax benefit related to 2017 US Tax Reform Act		23.3	158.7
Income tax benefit related to change in tax rate			222.4
Provisional income tax expense (benefit) from deferred foreign earnings			$ 63.7
Increase (decrease) in estimated transition tax liability	$ (23.3)	(40.4)
Undistributed earnings of foreign subsidiary		27
Tax credit carryforwards		36.1
Unrecognized that would impact effective tax rate		27.4
Foreign Tax Authority
Operating Loss Carryforwards [Line Items]
Operating loss carryforwards		176.9
Domestic Tax Authority
Operating Loss Carryforwards [Line Items]
Operating loss carryforwards		$ 41.6

INCOME TAX - Components of Inco

INCOME TAX - Components of Income Tax Expense (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Current income tax expense (benefit):
Federal	$ 50,048	$ (20,984)	$ 79,903
State	29,788	21,122	3,468
Foreign	90,895	79,320	67,851
Current tax expense	170,731	79,458	151,222
Deferred income tax expense (benefit):
Federal	(79,813)	(8,760)	(266,869)
State	(29,326)	(1,684)	9,678
Foreign	598	8,474	4,582
Deferred tax expense	(108,541)	(1,970)	(252,609)
Provision for income taxes	$ 62,190	$ 77,488	$ (101,387)

INCOME TAX - Income Before Inco

INCOME TAX - Income Before Income Taxes, Domestic and Foreign (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]
United States	$ 60,000	$ 131,067	$ 29,692
Foreign	457,925	431,088	362,991
Income before income taxes and equity in income of equity method investments	$ 517,925	$ 562,155	$ 392,683

INCOME TAX - Reconciliation (De

INCOME TAX - Reconciliation (Details)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]
Federal U.S. statutory rate	21.00%	21.00%	35.00%
Valuation allowance	4.60%	1.40%	(3.20%)
Foreign interest income not subject to tax	(4.50%)	(1.70%)	(2.20%)
Tax credits	(3.90%)	(0.50%)	(0.30%)
Foreign-derived intangible income deduction	(2.70%)	(1.60%)	0.00%
Uncertain tax positions	(2.60%)	(0.90%)	(0.50%)
Share-based compensation expense	(2.50%)	(2.10%)	(4.20%)
State income taxes, net of federal income tax benefit	1.00%	2.70%	1.90%
Foreign income taxes	(0.70%)	(0.50%)	(12.00%)
Federal U.S. transition tax	0.00%	(4.10%)	16.20%
Federal U.S. rate reduction	0.00%	0.00%	(55.60%)
Other SAB 118 adjustments	0.00%	(0.60%)	0.00%
Other	2.30%	0.70%	(0.90%)
Effective tax rate	12.00%	13.80%	(25.80%)

INCOME TAX - Deferred Tax Asset

INCOME TAX - Deferred Tax Assets and Liabilities (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016
Deferred income tax assets:
Lease liabilities	$ 94,965	$ 0
Financial instruments	65,848	768
Share-based compensation expense	48,204	11,333
Accrued expenses	40,035	35,913
Foreign net operating loss carryforwards	37,818	10,833
Income tax credit carryforwards	37,057	3,102
Domestic net operating loss carryforwards	22,254	20,096
Basis difference - U.K. business	2,030	4,890
Other	28,460	13,036
Gross deferred tax assets	376,671	99,971
Less: valuation allowance	(72,042)	(23,390)	$ (16,550)	$ (16,611)
Net deferred tax assets	304,629	76,581
Deferred tax liabilities:
Acquired intangibles	2,963,695	522,636
Property and equipment	193,052	102,654
Partnership interests	108,220	0
Right-of-use assets	83,023	0
Other	95,988	28,188
Gross deferred tax liabilities	3,443,978	653,478
Net deferred income tax liability	$ 3,139,349	$ 576,897

INCOME TAX - Net Deferred Tax A

INCOME TAX - Net Deferred Tax Asset and Liability (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]
Noncurrent deferred income tax asset	$ 6,292	$ 8,128
Noncurrent deferred income tax liability	3,145,641	585,025
Net deferred income tax liability	$ 3,139,349	$ 576,897

INCOME TAX - Change in Valuatio

INCOME TAX - Change in Valuation Allowance (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Movement in Deferred Tax Valuation Allowance [Roll Forward]
Valuation allowance, beginning of period	$ (23,390)	$ (16,550)	$ (16,611)
Valuation allowance, end of period	(72,042)	(23,390)	(16,550)
Net operating loss carryforwards
Movement in Deferred Tax Valuation Allowance [Roll Forward]
Valuation allowance, change		1,145	(3,793)
Net operating loss carryforwards | Foreign Tax Authority
Movement in Deferred Tax Valuation Allowance [Roll Forward]
Valuation allowance, change	(26,439)	(7,979)	(6,469)
Net operating loss carryforwards | Domestic Tax Authority
Movement in Deferred Tax Valuation Allowance [Roll Forward]
Valuation allowance, change	(307)
Income tax credit carryforward | Foreign Tax Authority
Movement in Deferred Tax Valuation Allowance [Roll Forward]
Valuation allowance, change	(15,226)		7,140
Income tax credit carryforward | State Tax Authority
Movement in Deferred Tax Valuation Allowance [Roll Forward]
Valuation allowance, change	$ (6,680)	$ (6)	(685)
Rate change
Movement in Deferred Tax Valuation Allowance [Roll Forward]
Valuation allowance, change			$ 3,868

INCOME TAX - Unrecognized Tax B

INCOME TAX - Unrecognized Tax Benefits (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Reconciliation of Unrecognized Tax Benefits, Excluding Amounts Pertaining to Examined Tax Returns [Roll Forward]
Balance at the beginning of the year	$ 21,197	$ 31,218	$ 17,916
Additions related to acquisitions	22,283	0	13,061
Reductions for income tax positions of prior years	(14,235)	(10,021)	(7,285)
Settlements with income tax authorities	(2,583)	0	(449)
Additions for income tax positions of prior years	1,803	0	411
Additions based on income tax positions related to the current year	1,206	0	7,537
Effect of foreign currency fluctuations on income tax positions	0	0	27
Balance at the end of the year	$ 29,671	$ 21,197	$ 31,218

SHAREHOLDERS_ EQUITY - Narrativ

SHAREHOLDERS’ EQUITY - Narrative (Details) - USD ($)	Feb. 19, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Jun. 30, 2019	Feb. 05, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Equity, Class of Treasury Stock [Line Items]
Stock repurchase program, remaining authorized repurchase amount (up to)		$ 473,400,000		$ 750,000,000
Common stock authorized (shares)		400,000,000	200,000,000		200,000,000
Subsequent Event
Equity, Class of Treasury Stock [Line Items]
Dividends declared (USD per share)	$ 0.195

SHAREHOLDERS_ EQUITY - Summary

SHAREHOLDERS’ EQUITY - Summary (Details) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, shares in Thousands, $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Equity [Abstract]
Number of shares repurchased and retired (shares)	2,328	1,927	376
Cost of shares repurchased, including commissions	$ 324,583	$ 212,196	$ 34,811
Average cost per share (USD per share)	$ 139.42	$ 110.11	$ 92.51

SHARE-BASED AWARDS AND OPTION_2

SHARE-BASED AWARDS AND OPTIONS - Narrative (Details) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017	May 31, 2011
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Share-based compensation expense	$ 89,634	$ 57,826	$ 39,095
Restricted Stock Awards and Performance Units
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Total fair value of share awards vested in period	82,100	43,400	33,700
Share-based compensation expense	74,300	53,200	35,200
Total unrecognized compensation cost of restricted stock and performance awards	$ 142,900
Weighted average period of unrecognized compensation cost	2 years 1 month 6 days
Restricted Stock Awards
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Award requisite service period	3 years
Stock Options
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Share-based compensation expense	$ 12,500	2,700	2,600
Aggregate value of stock options exercised	28,800	$ 16,500	$ 10,100
Total unrecognized compensation cost of stock options	$ 10,300
Weighted average period of unrecognized compensation cost	1 year 8 months 12 days
Fair market value (as a percent)	100.00%
Stock option term	10 years
Stock Option Plan 2011
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Stock reserved for future issuance (shares)				14,000,000
Stock Option Plan 2011 | Stock Options
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Weighted average grant date fair value (USD per share)	$ 99.56	$ 35.09	$ 23.68
Granted Fiscal 2015 | Stock Options
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Vesting period	3 years
Minimum | Performance Units
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Award requisite service period	1 year
Maximum | Performance Units
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Award requisite service period	3 years

SHARE-BASED AWARDS AND OPTION_3

SHARE-BASED AWARDS AND OPTIONS - Share-Based Compensation Expense (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Share-based Payment Arrangement [Abstract]
Share-based compensation expense	$ 89,634	$ 57,826	$ 39,095
Income tax benefit	$ 20,519	$ 13,038	$ 13,849

SHARE-BASED AWARDS AND OPTION_4

SHARE-BASED AWARDS AND OPTIONS - Restricted Stock Awards and Performance Units Activity (Details) - Restricted Stock Awards and Performance Units - $ / shares shares in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Shares
Nonvested, beginning of period (shares)	1,084	1,226	1,263
Replacement Awards (shares)	894
Granted (shares)	784	650	899
Vested (shares)	(781)	(722)	(858)
Forfeited (shares)	(137)	(70)	(78)
Nonvested, end of period (shares)	1,844	1,084	1,226
Weighted-Average Grant-Date Fair Value
Unvested, Weighted Average Grant-Date Fair Value, beginning of period (USD per share)	$ 108.51	$ 78.29	$ 49.55
Replacement Awards Weighted Average Grant-Date Fair Value (USD per share)	163.74
Granted, Weighted Average Grant-Date Fair Value (USD per share)	142.26	109.85	79.79
Vested, Weighted Average Grant-Date Fair Value (USD per share)	105.04	60.08	39.26
Forfeited, Weighted Average Grant-Date Fair Value (USD per share)	124.30	91.47	59.56
Unvested, Weighted Average Grant-Date Fair Value, end of period (USD per share)	$ 149.96	$ 108.51	$ 78.29

SHARE-BASED AWARDS AND OPTION_5

SHARE-BASED AWARDS AND OPTIONS - Stock Option Activity (Details) - Stock Options - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, shares in Thousands, $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016
Options
Outstanding, beginning of period (shares)	598	723	759
Granted (shares)	109	103	124
Replacement Awards (shares)	1,336
Forfeited (shares)	(23)	(22)
Exercised (shares)	(265)	(206)	(160)
Outstanding, end of period (shares)	1,755	598	723	759
Options vested and exercisable (shares)	1,167
Weighted-Average Exercise Price
Outstanding, Weighted Average Exercise Price, beginning of period (USD per share)	$ 59.16	$ 47.79	$ 37.51
Granted, Weighted Average Exercise Price (USD per share)	128.22	114.70	79.45
Replacement Awards, Weighted Average Exercise Price (USD per share)	68.96
Forfeited, Weighted Average Exercise Price (USD per share)	110.13	100.38
Exercised, Weighted Average Exercise Price (USD per share)	33.99	42.65	23.50
Outstanding, Weighted Average Exercise Price, end of period (USD per share)	74.06	$ 59.16	$ 47.79	$ 37.51
Options vested and exercisable, Weighted Average Exercise Price (USD per share)	$ 58.03
Weighted-Average Remaining Contractual Term
Outstanding, Weighted Average Remaining Contractual Term	6 years 6 months	6 years 2 months 12 days	6 years 4 months 24 days	6 years
Options vested and exercisable, Weighted Average Remaining Contractual Term	5 years 7 months 6 days
Aggregate Intrinsic Value
Outstanding at beginning of period	$ 27.3	$ 37.9	$ 24.5
Exercised	28.8	16.5	10.1
Outstanding at end of period	190.3	$ 27.3	$ 37.9	$ 24.5
Options vested and exercisable, Aggregate Intrinsic Value	$ 145.3

SHARE-BASED AWARDS AND OPTION_6

SHARE-BASED AWARDS AND OPTIONS - Schedule of Valuation (Details) - Stock Options	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Risk-free interest rate (as a percent)	1.72%	2.60%	1.99%
Expected volatility (as a percent)	31.00%	29.00%	30.00%
Dividend yield (as a percent)	0.04%	0.04%	0.06%
Expected term (years)	5 years	5 years	5 years

SUPPLEMENTAL CASH FLOW INFORM_3

SUPPLEMENTAL CASH FLOW INFORMATION - Summary (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Supplemental Cash Flow Information [Abstract]
Income taxes paid, net of refunds	$ 146,739	$ 101,302	$ 97,002
Interest paid	$ 206,562	$ 177,525	$ 154,200

NONCONTROLLING INTERESTS - Summ

NONCONTROLLING INTERESTS - Summary (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Noncontrolling Interest [Abstract]
Net income attributable to noncontrolling interests	$ 38,663	$ 32,614	$ 25,645
Foreign currency translation attributable to noncontrolling interests		(2,696)	13,807
Comprehensive income attributable to noncontrolling interests	$ 35,938	$ 29,918	$ 39,452

ACCUMULATED OTHER COMPREHENSI_3

ACCUMULATED OTHER COMPREHENSIVE LOSS - Summary (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017	Jan. 01, 2018
AOCI Attributable to Parent, Net of Tax [Roll Forward]
Beginning balance	$ 3,991,407
Cumulative effect of adoption of new accounting standards				$ 49,126
Ending balance	27,855,747	$ 3,991,407
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss
AOCI Attributable to Parent, Net of Tax [Roll Forward]
Beginning balance	(310,175)	(183,144)	$ (322,717)
Other comprehensive income (loss)	(396)	(125,188)	139,573
Cumulative effect of adoption of new accounting standards				(1,843)
Ending balance	(310,571)	(310,175)	(183,144)
Foreign Currency Translation
AOCI Attributable to Parent, Net of Tax [Roll Forward]
Beginning balance	(304,274)	(185,856)	(318,450)
Other comprehensive income (loss)	62,375	(116,575)	132,594
Cumulative effect of adoption of new accounting standards				(1,843)
Ending balance	(241,899)	(304,274)	(185,856)
Net Unrealized Gains (Losses) on Hedging Activities
AOCI Attributable to Parent, Net of Tax [Roll Forward]
Beginning balance	(2,374)	6,999	(640)
Other comprehensive income (loss)	(66,945)	(9,373)	7,639
Cumulative effect of adoption of new accounting standards				0
Ending balance	(69,319)	(2,374)	6,999
Other
AOCI Attributable to Parent, Net of Tax [Roll Forward]
Beginning balance	(3,527)	(4,287)	(3,627)
Other comprehensive income (loss)	4,174	760	(660)
Cumulative effect of adoption of new accounting standards				$ 0
Ending balance	$ 647	$ (3,527)	$ (4,287)

SEGMENT INFORMATION - Summary (

SEGMENT INFORMATION - Summary (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Sep. 30, 2019	Jun. 30, 2019	Mar. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Sep. 30, 2018	Jun. 30, 2018	Mar. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Revenues	$ 1,987,760	$ 1,105,941	$ 935,152	$ 883,039	$ 880,555	$ 857,670	$ 833,164	$ 794,977	$ 4,911,892	$ 3,366,366	$ 3,975,163
Operating income (loss) for segments	$ 196,162	$ 174,037	$ 221,726	$ 199,492	$ 166,986	$ 223,162	$ 190,737	$ 156,170	791,417	737,055	558,868
Depreciation and amortization									878,335	522,813	451,151
Merchant Solutions
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Acquisition and integration expenses									56,100
Operating Segments
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Revenues									4,930,674	3,366,366	3,975,163
Operating Segments | Merchant Solutions
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Revenues									4,098,580	3,345,181	3,955,988
Operating income (loss) for segments									1,148,975	940,157	771,911
Depreciation and amortization									677,196	516,731	444,100
Operating Segments | Issuer Solutions
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Revenues									604,654	21,185	19,175
Operating income (loss) for segments									82,172	14,084	12,710
Depreciation and amortization									157,799	710	647
Operating Segments | Business and Consumer Solutions
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Revenues									227,440	0	0
Operating income (loss) for segments									19,473	0	0
Depreciation and amortization									34,914	0	0
Intersegment Revenues
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Revenues									(18,782)	0	0
Corporate
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Operating income (loss) for segments									(459,203)	(217,186)	(225,753)
Depreciation and amortization									8,426	5,372	6,404
Corporate | Heartland
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Acquisition and integration expenses									$ 199,500	$ 56,100	$ 94,600

SEGMENT INFORMATION - Narrative

SEGMENT INFORMATION - Narrative (Details)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2019segment	Dec. 31, 2019reporting_units	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Number of reportable segments		3	3
Sales Revenue, Net | Geographic Concentration Risk | United States
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Percentage of total consolidated revenues from external customers	72.00%			67.00%	66.00%
Sales Revenue, Net | Geographic Concentration Risk | United Kingdom
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Percentage of total consolidated revenues from external customers	8.00%			9.00%	11.00%

SEGMENT INFORMATION - Assets by

SEGMENT INFORMATION - Assets by Region (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Long-lived assets, excluding goodwill and other intangible assets	$ 1,382,802	$ 653,542
United States
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Long-lived assets, excluding goodwill and other intangible assets	950,567	516,449
Foreign countries
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Long-lived assets, excluding goodwill and other intangible assets	$ 432,235	$ 137,093

COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES -

COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES - Narrative (Details) $ in Millions	Sep. 23, 2019USD ($)
Frontline Case | Performance Guarantee
Loss Contingencies [Line Items]
Damages awarded	$ 135.2

COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES_2

COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES - Summary (Details) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2019USD ($)
Purchase Obligations
2020	$ 125,533
2021	89,198
2022	36,835
2023	30,843
2024	25,632
Thereafter	28,718
Total future minimum payments	$ 336,759

QUARTERLY CONSOLIDATED FINANC_3

QUARTERLY CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL INFORMATION (UNAUDITED) - Schedule of Summarized Quarterly Results (Details) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Sep. 30, 2019	Jun. 30, 2019	Mar. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Sep. 30, 2018	Jun. 30, 2018	Mar. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Quarterly Financial Information Disclosure [Abstract]
Revenues	$ 1,987,760	$ 1,105,941	$ 935,152	$ 883,039	$ 880,555	$ 857,670	$ 833,164	$ 794,977	$ 4,911,892	$ 3,366,366	$ 3,975,163
Operating income	196,162	174,037	221,726	199,492	166,986	223,162	190,737	156,170	791,417	737,055	558,868
Net income	114,301	105,731	130,039	119,205	83,323	186,029	117,729	97,586	469,276	484,667	494,070
Net income attributable to Global Payments	$ 102,770	$ 95,044	$ 120,458	$ 112,341	$ 75,215	$ 176,370	$ 109,069	$ 91,399	$ 430,613	$ 452,053	$ 468,425
Basic earnings per share attributable to Global Payments (USD per share)	$ 0.34	$ 0.54	$ 0.77	$ 0.71	$ 0.48	$ 1.12	$ 0.69	$ 0.57	$ 2.17	$ 2.85	$ 3.03
Diluted earnings per share attributable to Global Payments (USD per share)	$ 0.34	$ 0.54	$ 0.77	$ 0.71	$ 0.47	$ 1.11	$ 0.68	$ 0.57	$ 2.16	$ 2.84	$ 3.01

QUARTERLY CONSOLIDATED FINANC_4

QUARTERLY CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL INFORMATION (UNAUDITED) - Narrative (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Sep. 30, 2019	Jun. 30, 2019	Mar. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Sep. 30, 2018	Jun. 30, 2018	Mar. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2019
Quarterly Financial Information Disclosure [Abstract]
Acquisition and integration expenses	$ 135.3	$ 100.8	$ 14.2	$ 5.3	$ 21.5	$ 8.2	$ 8.1	$ 18.3
Increase (decrease) in estimated transition tax liability		$ (23.3)							$ (40.4)

SCHEDULE II VALUATION AND QUA_2

SCHEDULE II VALUATION AND QUALIFYING ACCOUNTS (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Allowance for doubtful accounts
SEC Schedule, 12-09, Movement in Valuation Allowances and Reserves [Roll Forward]
Balance at Beginning of Period	$ 3,164	$ 1,827	$ 1,092
Additions: Charged to Costs and Expenses(2)	20,375	10,430	6,113
Deductions: Uncollectible Accounts Write-Offs (Recoveries)	10,350	9,093	5,378
Balance at End of Period	13,189	3,164	1,827
Reserve for merchant losses and sales allowances
SEC Schedule, 12-09, Movement in Valuation Allowances and Reserves [Roll Forward]
Balance at Beginning of Period	4,212	4,040	2,939
Additions: Charged to Costs and Expenses(2)	24,525	22,312	18,767
Deductions: Uncollectible Accounts Write-Offs (Recoveries)	25,049	22,140	17,666
Balance at End of Period	3,688	4,212	4,040
Reserve for check guarantee operating losses
SEC Schedule, 12-09, Movement in Valuation Allowances and Reserves [Roll Forward]
Balance at Beginning of Period	5,065	5,738	5,786
Additions: Charged to Costs and Expenses(2)	13,346	19,314	28,064
Deductions: Uncollectible Accounts Write-Offs (Recoveries)	14,490	19,987	28,112
Balance at End of Period	3,921	5,065	5,738
Reserve for contract contingencies and processing errors
SEC Schedule, 12-09, Movement in Valuation Allowances and Reserves [Roll Forward]
Balance at Beginning of Period	0
Additions: Charged to Costs and Expenses(2)	5,669
Deductions: Uncollectible Accounts Write-Offs (Recoveries)	1,453
Balance at End of Period	4,216	0
Reserve for cardholder losses
SEC Schedule, 12-09, Movement in Valuation Allowances and Reserves [Roll Forward]
Balance at Beginning of Period	0
Additions: Charged to Costs and Expenses(2)	24,391
Deductions: Uncollectible Accounts Write-Offs (Recoveries)	15,159
Balance at End of Period	9,232	0
Deferred income tax asset valuation allowance
SEC Schedule, 12-09, Movement in Valuation Allowances and Reserves [Roll Forward]
Balance at Beginning of Period	23,390	16,550	16,611
Additions: Charged to Costs and Expenses(2)	48,652	6,840	7,079
Deductions: Uncollectible Accounts Write-Offs (Recoveries)	0	0	7,140
Balance at End of Period	$ 72,042	$ 23,390	$ 16,550

Uncategorized Items - gpn201912

Label	Element	Value
Retained Earnings [Member]
Cumulative Effect of New Accounting Principle in Period of Adoption	us-gaap_CumulativeEffectOfNewAccountingPrincipleInPeriodOfAdoption	$ 50,969,000
Parent [Member]
Cumulative Effect of New Accounting Principle in Period of Adoption	us-gaap_CumulativeEffectOfNewAccountingPrincipleInPeriodOfAdoption	$ 49,126,000