Stripe’s moves are causing a stir at Nexi and in the digital payments sector

(Il Sole 24 Ore Radiocor) - Stripe’s M&A moves are reigniting excitement in the digital payments sector on the stock market, whilst the American fintech firm, following its bid for the start-up OpenRouter, is preparing to make a move on PayPal as well. Thus, although shares in the San José-based digital payments giant are flat in pre-market trading on Wall Street, European stocks in the sector are coming to the fore: from Adyen in Amsterdam – fresh from last week’s better-than-expected results – to Nexi, which remains under market scrutiny regarding thespeculation that CDP may increase its stake from the current 19.6 per cent to 29.9 per cent (last week saw moves by Nexi’s advisers, Mediobanca and JP Morgan, regarding the financial operator’s capital).

Returning to Stripe, the privately-owned fintech firm, according to Bloomberg, it reportedly reached an agreement yesterday for the acquisition of OpenRouter – a platform that provides access to more than 400 AI models, including Chinese ones – for a sum of around 7 billion dollars. The figure is reportedly lower than the 10 billion initially estimated by experts, but would significantly exceed the valuation of 1.3 billion attributed to the start-up in its latest capital raise of 113 million. The news has not yet been confirmed by Stripe. However, market observers believe that, following this expansion into the AI sector, the company – valued at $159 billion in a recent transaction – could also step up its efforts in other key M&A areas, and in particular, the one involving PayPal.

In July, in fact, Stripe and Advent International submitted a joint bid to acquire PayPal Holdings at $60.50 per share in a deal that valued the payments company at over $53 billion. The deal was reportedly backed by around $50 billion in committed bank financing and offered a 28 per cent premium on market prices. At the time, the paytech’s board rejected the proposal, reportedly aiming for a valuation of close to $70 per share. However, negotiations have continued, with an agreement potentially being reached in the coming weeks. Should it go ahead, the deal would be the largest fintech acquisition ever and would breathe new life into a sector that has recently had to contend with rapid changes in financial technology and the rise of AI.