Stripe considers going public, unlikely to go for a traditional IPO

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Stripe, an internet payment processing company, is considering going public and has given itself a one-year deadline to decide. 

The company has hired Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase to advise on the possibility and timing of an initial public offering (IPO), as reported by the Wall Street Journal. According to a source, Stripe's leadership will either carry out an IPO or allow employees to sell shares privately.

Stripe's management is unlikely to go for a traditional IPO as the company does not require additional funding. Instead, the company is more likely to opt for a direct listing, in which existing shares are made available for trading on a public stock exchange, and the price is determined by market forces.

Stripe, founded by John and Patrick Collison from Ireland in 2009, offers payment processing services to big internet firms such as Shopify and Instacart. 

In 2021, it raised $600 million in funding and was valued at $95 billion with investors like the National Treasury Management Agency of Ireland, Fidelity Investments, Allianz, and AXA insurance companies.

Stripe has had a fluctuating relationship with digital assets starting from 2014. In 2015, they announced they would accept Bitcoin as payment, allowing users to transact with it like traditional currencies. 

However, Stripe stopped accepting Bitcoin in 2018 after three years, with its founders stating that Bitcoin is better suited as an investment rather than a means of exchange.

Stripe returned to the crypto market in 2021 during a period of growth and increased their focus on blockchain-based payments. In 2022, they revealed support for payments in crypto and unique tokens using traditional currency. 

Businesses can now use Stripe to receive traditional currency payments for crypto through new APIs.

Shashank is the founder of yMedia. He ventured into crypto in 2013 and is an ETH maximalist. Twitter: @bhardwajshash