Stripe Teams Up With Advent International in $53B Takeover Offer for PayPal
Stripe and private equity firm Advent International have submitted a bid to acquire PayPal for $53 billion. The proposal would result in an equal ownership split.
Stripe and private‑equity firm Advent International have lodged a joint bid to acquire PayPal Holdings, presenting an offer valued at more than $53 billion. The proposal, which was submitted earlier this month following an initial approach in April, offers shareholders $60.50 per share. This figure represents a 28% premium over PayPal’s closing price on Tuesday. The bid is supported by approximately $50 billion in committed bank financing.
The acquisition attempt targets a company that has experienced a prolonged period of contraction. PayPal, which achieved a market capitalization peak near $360 billion in 2021, saw that valuation fall to approximately $36 billion at its lowest point this year. Over the last five years, PayPal’s stock has declined by 84%, contrasting with a 74% gain for the S&P 500 over the same period. In the last year alone, the company has surrendered more than 40% of its market value. The business currently faces competition from platforms including Apple Pay, Google Pay, Zelle, and Cash App.
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Under the terms of the proposed acquisition, Stripe and Advent would each hold an equal 50% ownership stake in PayPal. The bidders have indicated no intention to break up the company or dismantle its existing structure. Should the deal proceed, it would combine two of the world's most significant payment networks. This integration would potentially unite the stablecoin infrastructure of Bridge—which Stripe acquired in 2025—with PayPal’s own PYUSD stablecoin, which currently maintains a market cap near $2.9 billion. Pairing Bridge’s token-issuance capabilities with the consumer reach of PYUSD would provide the merged firm with end-to-end control of the stablecoin stack.
The offer follows significant internal shifts at PayPal. The following month, the organization restructured into three distinct units: checkout services, consumer financial products including Venmo, and a payments and cryptocurrency division. Leadership has also announced initiatives to reduce costs and eliminate redundancies, with projections estimating roughly $1.5 billion in savings over the next two to three years for reinvestment purposes.
Market response to the news was immediate, with PayPal shares rising 14% to $54.60 in pre-market trading on Wednesday. Despite the premium offered, industry reaction remains mixed. Michael Burry, a former hedge-fund manager, expressed the view that the proposed price of $60.50 is insufficient, arguing that the company’s intrinsic value sits between $75 and $115 per share.
"With control over the cash flows, those businesses and the personnel, the new owner will have many levers to increase value and make for a better overall business,,"
In contrast, Morgan Stanley analysts led by James Facuette cautioned in May that PayPal faces fundamental business challenges that may require more than strategic realignment. They suggested that the company requires significantly accelerated investment, a commitment they noted had not yet been signaled by management. Stripe, currently valued at $159 billion following a February tender offer, has maintained a silence alongside its partners at Advent International; neither party, nor PayPal, has issued a formal response to the offer.
As of Wednesday, discussions are ongoing. The bidding parties reportedly hope to move negotiations forward within the coming weeks as they look toward a potential end-of-month target for an agreement.
