Stripe and Advent International in Talks to Acquire PayPal

Stripe and private equity firm Advent International are in negotiations to purchase PayPal, according to reporting from the Wall Street Journal. The two entities previously submitted an offer in July of $60.50 per share, which valued PayPal at $53 billion, though PayPal declined that initial proposal. The Wall Street Journal reports that the companies are now discussing a higher price per share, with a potential announcement coming in the next few weeks.

Reuters reports that Stripe and Advent would each hold an equal stake in the company and intend to keep PayPal intact. Such a merger would position Stripe as one of the world's largest online payment processors, handling approximately $3.7 trillion in annual payments. According to Reuters, the acquisition would allow Stripe to integrate PayPal's crypto features, its checkout system, and Venmo into its own product suite, while potentially decreasing Stripe's dependence on MasterCard and Visa.

The talks arrive as PayPal CEO Enrique Lores, who took the helm in March, attempts to reverse the company's lagging trajectory. TechCrunch reports that Lores' turnaround strategy includes a plan to reduce the workforce by 20% over the next two to three years and a restructuring of the business into three units: consumer financial services (including Venmo), checkout solutions and PayPal, and payment services and crypto.

PayPal's market value has seen a significant decline from its pandemic-era peak. The Wall Street Journal notes that the company was trading at historic lows prior to the July proposal, valued at roughly $40 billion—a drop of approximately $320 billion from its highest valuation.