Participated · Series H · Mar 2021

Stripe is a digital payments platform that processes online payment volume for businesses of all sizes. In its 2024 annual letter the company reported payment volume grew to $1.4 trillion, up 38% year over year. Stripe says it is now used by half of the Fortune 100, showing expansion into major enterprise customers. The margin Stripe makes on transactions remains thin, leaving the business room and need to scale further. The company has not laid out plans to go public and instead provided liquidity to employees via a tender offer while repurchasing shares. That tender sale valued Stripe at $91.5 billion, a rise from a $70 billion secondary a year earlier but below its $95 billion 2021 high-water mark. Stripe provides payments and broader financial infrastructure tools for businesses across sizes and geographies. Founded by Patrick and John Collison in 2010 and Irish‑founded, the company has expanded beyond payments into a widely used suite of financial services. Last year Stripe processed more than $1 trillion in payments for its clients, a 25% year‑on‑year increase, and recorded over 300 million transactions during its busiest four‑day Black Friday period. Irish businesses processed more than €20bn through Stripe, and its client roster includes large enterprises such as Alaska Airlines, Best Buy, Microsoft, Uber and Zara as well as Irish firms. The company is regarded as a leading global fintech and a prominent Irish startup success. The article notes growing investor interest and speculation about a potential IPO. Stripe is a payment-processing company that builds economic infrastructure for businesses. It raised $6.5 billion in a funding round at a $50 billion valuation, down from a $95 billion valuation in 2021. Primary participants included existing shareholders Andreessen Horowitz, Baillie Gifford, Founders Fund, General Catalyst, MSD Partners, and Thrive Capital, and new investors GIC, Goldman Sachs Asset and Wealth Management, and Temasek. The funds will be used to provide liquidity to current and former employees and to address employee withholding-tax obligations tied to equity awards; those actions will retire Stripe shares to offset issuance to Series I investors. Stripe said it does not need this capital to run its business. The company is reportedly considering going public within the next year and cut about 14% of its workforce in November. Stripe offers an API-first payments platform used to power online and in-app transactions for a broad range of customers. The company has expanded beyond core payments, investing in startups and forming strategic partnerships as it moves into adjacent areas. Stripe said it will use new capital to invest in product development, further global expansion, and strategic initiatives. The firm reported having $2 billion on its balance sheet, signaling strong liquidity. Stripe has seen accelerated demand as businesses and consumers move transactions online during the pandemic and lists customers such as Zoom, Just Eat, NBC and others. The company remains private and said the raise is intended to enable continued growth rather than to address a cash shortfall. Stripe began as a payments provider offering an API that lets e-commerce businesses integrate payments into apps and websites. In recent years it has expanded into a wider range of financial services and now describes itself as a "Global Payments and Treasury Network." New products include cash advances and corporate cards, alongside services such as incorporation assistance and fraud protection. The company is accelerating international expansion — it recently added payments in eight more countries and plans to reach 40 — and is targeting larger enterprise customers like Wayfair, Airbnb, Twilio, GitHub and The RealReal. Stripe says it processes "hundreds of billions of dollars a year for millions of businesses worldwide." Management says it remains happy being private and is investing for long-term opportunities rather than preparing to go public.