Stripe and Advent Make Blockbuster $53 Billion Bid to Take Over PayPal

A Deal That Could Reshape Digital Payments Forever

Payments company Stripe and private equity firm Advent International have made a joint offer to acquire PayPal Holdings Inc. for $60.50 per share, in a deal that would value the payments company at more than $53 billion. The offer, which became public on July 15, sent shockwaves through the financial world — and sent PayPal's stock soaring. PayPal shares surged between 13% and 19% in early trading on the news.

The proposal marks one of the biggest potential transactions in the digital payments industry in recent years. For everyday consumers who use PayPal to shop online, send money, or manage their Venmo accounts, the implications could be enormous. Two of the most powerful forces in fintech are now circling one of the industry's most iconic brands.

The Numbers Behind the Bid

The bid represents a premium of about 28% over PayPal's Tuesday closing price of $47.37. The offer, submitted earlier this month, is backed by about $50 billion in committed financing from banks. That level of financial firepower signals this is no casual inquiry — it's a serious, fully assembled play for one of the world's most recognizable payment brands.

Stripe, Advent, and Block are contributing $17 billion in equity for the offer. Under the proposal, the two buyers would hold equal stakes and keep PayPal intact rather than break it up. That last point matters: this isn't a story about a company being dismantled for parts. The bidders appear to want PayPal whole — and want it badly.

Why PayPal? Why Now?

PayPal has been navigating a prolonged turnaround after years of slowing growth and intensifying competition from rivals including Apple Pay and Google Pay. At its height in 2021, PayPal's market cap reached around $360 billion; it has since dropped to a low of approximately $36 billion this year. That stunning decline from grace made the company a compelling — and arguably undervalued — target.

The company also replaced its former CEO, Alex Chriss, this year, who was brought in to turn around the company's poor performance. PayPal's board named HP's Enrique Lores as its new president and CEO. In the first quarter of 2026, PayPal noted that active account growth was largely driven by Venmo, which has also experienced six consecutive quarters of double-digit percentage growth in total payment volume. Venmo alone could be a crown jewel worth fighting over.

Stripe, a privately held payments company valued at $159 billion following a February employee tender offer, would gain a major foothold in consumer payments through the deal. Stripe has long dominated the back-end infrastructure that powers online commerce, but it lacks the massive consumer-facing wallet that PayPal has built over two decades. This acquisition would close that gap in one stroke.

What Happens Next

This isn't Stripe's first approach. An earlier acquisition attempt was made back in April 2026 and went completely unanswered by PayPal's board. The fact that Stripe and Advent came back with a formal, fully financed offer just three months later suggests they're not treating silence as rejection. PayPal's board is expected to meet as soon as July 20 to discuss the offer.

Not everyone thinks the price is fair. Investor Michael Burry, the "Big Short" figure, estimated PayPal's intrinsic value between $75 and $115 per share, with his best guess around $100 — implying the Stripe-Advent consortium is trying to buy the company at roughly 60 cents on the dollar. William Blair analyst Andrew Jeffrey is also skeptical, writing that PayPal's new CEO would likely not embrace what could be viewed as a low-ball offer, and suggesting that if the current bid is an opening salvo, Stripe and Advent could go as high as $70 per share.

Global merger activity hit a record $2.8 trillion in the first half of 2026 and is projected to grow to $4 trillion this year. This bid fits squarely into that wave of consolidation. Prediction markets are currently pricing an 82% probability that PayPal is acquired before 2027, and a 75% probability that Stripe specifically closes a deal in 2026. Whether PayPal's board accepts, counters, or walks away, the payments landscape will never look quite the same again.