March 26 (Reuters) - Mastercard ( MA ) is seeking to

sell the real-time payments unit that it acquired from Denmark's

Nets Group in 2019 for $3.2 billion, the Financial Times

reported on Thursday.

The credit card giant has hired investment bankers to lead a

sale of the business that could draw interest from private

equity groups, the report said.

Mastercard ( MA ) is likely to fetch a lower valuation than the

price it paid, the report said.

The company did not immediately respond to a Reuters request

for comment.

In 2019, Mastercard ( MA ) bought a majority stake in the corporate

services businesses of Scandinavian payments group Nets.

Earlier this month, it agreed to acquire stablecoin

infrastructure firm BVNK for up to $1.8 billion.