Thomas Lyons Irish-founded payment giant Stripe has reported a 26% increase in transactions last year, but the company acknowledges that growth has slowed compared to previous years. In its 2022 annual letter, the company’s Irish founders, Patrick and John Collision, stated that although the transactions had grown, it still represented a “significant deceleration” compared to previous years. Transactions grew to €747bn in 2021, compared to €585bn in the previous year. The slowing pace of growth was flagged by the brothers in its company update last year as it had benefited from people turning to selling online as a result of the pandemic.
Stripe revealed that the number of new businesses coming to Stripe increased by 19% last year, averaging more than 1,000 a day. The US remains the company’s largest market, but 55% of the business that joined Stripe in 2022 were based outside of it. The company now supports businesses in 50 countries. The Collision brothers said they are “as confident as ever” in the internet economy’s long-term prospects. The company stated that more than 100 companies now handle more than $1bn in payments across its services every year. “This set continues to grow rapidly, expanding by more than 50% each year since 2018,” the letter said.
In November last year, Stripe announced that it would be reducing its global workforce by 14%, equating to approximately 1,000 jobs. Stripe has recently seen its valuation drop to €50bn from a high reported in March 2021 of €95bn. This comes following another funding round where the company raised $6.5bn (€5.94bn) from investors. However, Stripe is not a publicly traded company, and such valuations are based on estimates from funding rounds.
Stripe has been growing rapidly over the past few years, and its success has been attributed to its ability to provide a simple and easy-to-use payment system for online businesses. The company has also been expanding its services to include fraud detection and prevention, subscription management, and invoicing. Stripe’s growth has been fueled by the increasing number of businesses moving online and the growing demand for digital payments. The pandemic has accelerated this trend, and Stripe has been one of the main beneficiaries.
Stripe’s success has not gone unnoticed, and the company has been attracting the attention of investors and competitors alike. The company’s valuation has been growing rapidly, and it has been rumored to be considering an IPO in the near future. However, the company has not made any official announcements regarding its plans for going public.
Despite the recent slowdown in growth, Stripe remains one of the most successful and innovative companies in the payment industry. The company’s founders have expressed confidence in the long-term prospects of the internet economy and believe that Stripe is well-positioned to capitalize on the growing demand for digital payments. As more businesses move online, Stripe is likely to continue to grow and expand its services, making it a company to watch in the coming years.
