Stripe and Advent propose a price of $60.50 per share for PayPal, which values the company at over $53 billion.

      Stripe and Advent International have proposed a cash offer of $60.50 per share for PayPal, a bid that values the payments firm at over $53 billion and is supported by approximately $50 billion in committed financing from banks, as reported by Reuters.

      The two buyers would have equal shares in the company and, notably for a proposal involving a private equity firm, they have stated that they do not intend to break the company apart. The offer was submitted earlier this month, following an initial overture in early April, but PayPal has yet to respond.

      Advent is familiar with this segment of the market, having taken the Canadian processor Nuvei private in a $6.3 billion deal in 2024; Nuvei is currently in the process of acquiring Payoneer for $2.75 billion with the specific aim of creating a competitor to Stripe. If the PayPal bid is accepted, Advent will be financing both sides of that competition.

      The proposed $60.50 represents approximately 28% above Tuesday’s closing price of around $47, making it a generous figure in relation to the share price. However, compared to PayPal's own historical performance, it represents a significant decline: the company’s market cap reached nearly $360 billion in 2021, dipped to about $36 billion earlier this year, and has fallen over 40% in the past year.

      The decline of PayPal has been gradual and noticeable. Founded in the late 1990s, it was the go-to payment method for online transactions for a decade, but it has watched as Apple Pay, Google Pay, and several fintech competitors have changed consumer habits. The company is also six months into a leadership overhaul. In February, the board replaced CEO Alex Chriss, stating that his pace of change and execution did not meet expectations, and issued a 2026 profit forecast that was significantly lower than Wall Street’s, resulting in a 19% drop in shares in one day. Enrique Lores, previously the CEO of HP, assumed the role on March 1.

      At that time, analysts from Evercore ISI noted that the key question was whether the new CEO would “assemble a strong payments team to facilitate another multi-year turnaround or consider reviewing options for strategic assets.” Five months later, someone else has already touched on the latter option for him.

      Lores has acted swiftly. In April, he restructured PayPal into three divisions: checkout, consumer financial services and Venmo, and payments and crypto. In May, he outlined a plan to leverage AI to eliminate redundant work within the organization, aiming for about $1.5 billion in savings over two to three years, all planned for reinvestment.

      The initial signs suggest some success. First-quarter revenue rose by 7% to $8.35 billion, surpassing an $8.05 billion consensus, and total payment volume grew by 8% on a currency-neutral basis to approximately $464 billion.

      The bid has come at a time when the company is no longer declining, rather than one that is on the upswing. In contrast, Stripe has experienced significant growth. It was valued at $159 billion in a February offer for employees and shareholders, more than 70% higher than a comparable sale a year prior, and processed $1.9 trillion in payments in 2025, a 34% increase.

      Privately owned, co-headquartered in San Francisco and Dublin, Stripe’s co-founder John Collison has expressed that agency-driven commerce will fundamentally transform online shopping. The payments sector has been consolidating around that idea for some time. Last year, Global Payments agreed to acquire Worldpay from FIS and GTCR for $24.25 billion, Mastercard paid up to $1.8 billion for BVNK, and Airwallex raised $11 billion last month under the assumption that software agents will soon be making purchases.

      Acquiring PayPal would provide Stripe with a unique advantage that cannot be easily replicated: a well-established consumer brand that people trust with their credit card information. Stripe and Advent are looking to expedite discussions in the upcoming weeks and are aiming for a deal by the end of the month. PayPal, Stripe, and Advent have all declined to comment, and there is no assurance that a transaction will materialize.