Stripe, Advent offer to buy PayPal for more than $53 billion: Reuters

Payments companyStripeand private equity firmAdventInternational have made a jointofferto acquirePayPalHoldings Incfor $60.50 per share, in a deal that would value the payments company atmorethan$53billion, two people familiar with the matter said.

Theoffer, submitted earlier this month, is backed by about $50billionin committed financing from banks, the people said, and represents around a 28% premium toPayPal’s closing share price on Tuesday.

The people declined to be named as the deal discussions are confidential.Adventdeclined to comment, whilePayPalandStripedid not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment.

The proposal follows an initial approach made in early April, thesourcessaid.StripeandAdventhave not received a response fromPayPaland are seeking to advance discussions in the coming weeks, thesourcesadded.

Under the proposal,StripeandAdventwould jointly ownPayPal, with each holding an equal stake, ratherthanbreaking up the company, the people said. There is no certainty the approach will result in a transaction, they added.

Founded in the late 1990s,PayPalwas an early player in digital payments, but has faced increasing competition as consumers have embraced alternative payment methods and rivals such as Apple Pay and Google Pay have gained market share.

It has spent the past several years grappling with slowing growth and intensifying competition in digital payments, wiping out much of the value it gained during the pandemic.

The company’s market capitalization peaked at about $360billionin 2021 and fell to as low as roughly $36billionthis year. It has lostmorethan40% of its market value over the past 12 months.

After taking over in March,PayPalCEO Enrique Lores started a sweepingturnaroundexercise to simplify ‌the payments provider and sharpen its focus on growth.

In April, the company split its operations into three units covering checkout, consumer financial services Venmo, and payments and crypto, while making a series of management changes.