Stripe, the world's most valuable private fintech company, and private equity giant Advent International have made a joint unsolicited bid to acquire PayPal Holdings. The offer is $60.50 per share, valuing PayPal at more than $53 billion. This represents a 28% premium over PayPal's closing price on July 14.
The bid, submitted on July 15, is backed by approximately $50 billion in committed bank financing. The consortium plans for Stripe and Advent to take equal ownership stakes in a combined entity. Their stated intention is to keep PayPal operating as a unified business.
PayPal's stock surged in premarket trading following the news.
Stripe's business is built on payment infrastructure, powering checkout for major companies. PayPal offers a contrasting asset: a massive consumer-facing brand with hundreds of millions of user accounts and products like Venmo.
For investors, an unsolicited bid is not a guaranteed deal. PayPal's board has not accepted the offer. The substantial premium is significant, but the board could argue the company is worth more. The premarket stock jump already reflects much of the deal's premium, meaning new buyers are betting the acquisition closes at or above the offered price.