Stripe and Advent’s $60.50 Per Share Offer for PayPal
Payments company Stripe and private equity firm Advent International have made a joint offer to acquire PayPal Holdings Inc for $60.50 per share, valuing the company at more than $53 billion, according to two sources familiar with the matter. The proposed $60.50-per-share deal, which represents around a 28% premium to PayPal’s closing share price on Tuesday, is backed by about $50 billion in committed financing from banks. The offer, submitted earlier this month, would see Stripe and Advent jointly own PayPal, with each party holding an equal stake, rather than breaking up the company.
The offer follows an initial approach made in early April, the sources said. Stripe and Advent have not received a response from PayPal and are seeking to advance discussions in the coming weeks, the sources added. The discussions remain in the exploratory phase, with no certainty the approach will result in a transaction.
PayPal’s $43 Billion Market Cap in February 2026
The offer price is significantly higher than PayPal’s market cap in February 2026, which stood at roughly $43 billion. At the time, rumors of a potential acquisition sent PayPal shares up 7% in a single session. Stripe’s valuation reached $159 billion following a tender offering that brought in heavyweight investors like Thrive Capital and Coatue.
PayPal, founded in the late 1990s, 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. Its market capitalization peaked at about $360 billion in 2021 and fell to as low as roughly $36 billion this year, losing over 40% of its value in the past 12 months. After taking over in March, Enrique Lores started a sweeping turnaround exercise to simplify the payments provider and sharpen its focus on growth.
The proposed acquisition comes amid ongoing regulatory scrutiny. Combining two of the world’s largest digital payments companies would attract intense scrutiny from antitrust regulators on both sides of the Atlantic. PayPal shareholders face a different calculus: the $60.50-per-share price represents a meaningful premium over where the stock traded during the initial February rumors, but PayPal was once a $300 billion company.
Stripe’s 2025 Acquisitions of Bridge and Privy
Stripe has been aggressively building out its crypto infrastructure. The company acquired Bridge, a stablecoin-focused payments company, for $1.1 billion in 2025. It followed that up by scooping up Privy later in the same year. PayPal, meanwhile, has its own stablecoin ambitions. The company developed PYUSD, a dollar-backed stablecoin designed to bring digital asset functionality to its massive base of everyday consumers.
As of mid-July 2026, no formal confirmation of the $60.50 per share figure or Advent’s specific participation had been publicly verified. The discussions appear to be real, but the gap between “exploratory talks” and “signed deal” in M&A is roughly the width of the Grand Canyon. Stripe and Advent have not received a response from PayPal, and the deal remains uncertain.
Advent declined to comment, while PayPal and Stripe did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment. The proposal, submitted earlier this month, is backed by about $50 billion in committed financing from banks, the people said. The joint ownership structure would see each party holding an equal stake in PayPal, rather than breaking up the company. There is no certainty the approach will result in a transaction, the sources added.
The deal, if it goes through, would rank among the largest fintech acquisitions in history.
PayPal’s PYUSD Stablecoin Initiative
The stablecoin angle changes everything. Stripe’s acquisitions of Bridge and Privy in 2025 demonstrate its focus on crypto infrastructure, while PayPal’s PYUSD aims to bring digital asset functionality to its consumer base. However, the regulatory hurdles are real and potentially deal-breaking.
Prior to the current proposal, in February 2026, Bloomberg reported that Stripe was exploring an acquisition of PayPal or its assets. That report alone was enough to send PayPal shares up 7% in a single session. The current offer, valued at $60.50 per share, represents a significant premium to where PayPal was trading when acquisition rumors first surfaced. The discussions appear to be real, but the gap between “exploratory talks” and “signed deal” in M&A is roughly the width of the Grand Canyon.
PayPal’s market capitalization had fallen to as low as roughly $36 billion this year. The company’s decline follows years of slowing growth and intensifying competition in digital payments. Founded in the late 1990s, PayPal was an early player in digital payments but has faced increasing competition as consumers have embraced alternative payment methods. The company’s market cap peaked at about $360 billion in 2021 and fell to as low as roughly $36 billion this year.
Stripe and Advent’s joint offer marks a significant development. However, the regulatory landscape remains complex, with antitrust regulators in both the U.S. and Europe likely to scrutinize the transaction closely.
The current state of the discussions highlights the challenges of large-scale mergers in the fintech industry. While the financial terms are attractive, the uncertainty surrounding regulatory approval and shareholder acceptance remains a critical factor. PayPal’s recent restructuring under Enrique Lores aims to position the company for growth.
Find more reporting in our Business section.
Related reading
