Stripe

Cross River Bank Raises $50M Equity to Scale Embedded Finance Platform

Cross River Bank, via parent CRB Group, raised $50 million in common equity from existing investors including T. Rowe Price Investment Management. The funding will scale its API-driven core banking system (COS) powering embedded finance for over 100 fintech partners. CEO Gilles Gade framed the strategy as "embedded finance 2.0," bundling payments, cards, lending, and crypto on one AI-enhanced platform.

Stripe Reportedly Explores Acquisition of PayPal or Key Assets

Bloomberg reported that Stripe, valued at $159 billion, is considering acquiring PayPal or select assets including its consumer wallet and Venmo. The potential deal would be the largest fintech M&A transaction ever. PayPal denied sale talks and Stripe declined to comment, with subsequent reports from Semafor indicating Stripe is not actively pursuing a takeover.

Stripe Launches Tempo Blockchain Network for Stablecoin Payments

Stripe launched Tempo, a blockchain network developed with Paradigm, designed for enterprise-scale stablecoin payments. The network targets tens of thousands of transactions per second with sub-second finality. This represents a significant push by Stripe into blockchain-based embedded finance infrastructure.

Stripe Acquires Orum to Add Multi-Rail Payments Orchestration

Stripe acquired Orum, an API-based payments orchestration platform, in an undisclosed deal during July 2025. Orum's infrastructure connects businesses to multiple U.S. payment rails including FedACH, FedNow, FedWire, RTP, and Same Day ACH. The acquisition strengthens Stripe's instant payment capabilities and multi-rail access for embedded finance use cases.

Stripe Receives Georgia Limited-Purpose Bank Charter Approval

Stripe received approval from the Georgia Department of Banking and Finance for a Merchant Acquirer Limited-Purpose Bank (MALPB) charter. This enables Stripe to process Visa and Mastercard transactions directly without a sponsor bank. It is only the third such charter granted, following Fiserv and Shift4.

Stripe Acquires Crypto Wallet Infrastructure Provider Privy

Stripe acquired Privy, a crypto wallet infrastructure provider, as part of a wave of major fintech M&A activity in June 2025. The deal expands Stripe's capabilities in crypto and embedded wallet infrastructure. This signals Stripe's deeper push into Web3 and crypto-adjacent embedded finance services.

Stripe Applies for Georgia MALPB Charter to Bypass Sponsor Banks

Stripe's application for a Merchant Acquirer Limited Purpose Bank (MALPB) charter was accepted by Georgia's banking regulator in early 2025. The charter would allow Stripe to access Visa and Mastercard networks directly without a sponsor bank. No approval had been granted by April 2025, and the application remains pending.

Stripe Acquires Stablecoin Platform Bridge for $1.1 Billion

Stripe acquired Bridge, a stablecoin infrastructure platform, for $1.1 billion in the largest crypto acquisition at the time. Bridge was founded by Coinbase and Square alumni and had raised $40 million led by Sequoia. The deal strengthens Stripe's ability to offer fast, low-cost stablecoin-based payments across chains like Solana, Ethereum, and Polygon.

Fifth Third Bank's Newline Partners with Stripe to Power Treasury

Fifth Third Bank announced that its Newline™ embedded payments platform will serve as the banking backend for Stripe Treasury. The partnership enables software platforms using Stripe to offer embedded financial accounts, payments, cards, and deposits. This replaces Stripe's prior Treasury relationships with Evolve Bank & Trust and Goldman Sachs, signaling a shift toward a more compliance-focused BaaS infrastructure.

Fragment Raises $9M Seed Round Backed by Stripe and Plaid Executives

Fragment, a fintech infrastructure startup, announced a $9 million seed round bringing total funding to $10.8 million. Investors include executives from Stripe and Plaid. Fragment provides an API to compose fund flows, generate code, and embed financial products into applications, targeting developers building on banking rails.

Stripe Acquires Merchant-of-Record Platform Lemon Squeezy

Stripe acquired Lemon Squeezy, a Salt Lake City-based merchant-of-record payment processor, for an undisclosed amount. The acquisition adds compliance, global tax handling, subscriptions, and multi-currency support to Stripe's offerings. This is Stripe's 16th acquisition since its 2010 founding.

Stripe Integrates A2A Payments in Checkout via TrueLayer

Stripe embedded account-to-account (A2A) payments into its checkout flow through a partnership with open banking provider TrueLayer. The integration enables merchants using Stripe to accept direct bank payments alongside traditional card payments. This aligns with the broader embedded finance trend projected to exceed $7 trillion by 2026.

Stripe Becomes Strategic Payments Processor for Amazon

Stripe was announced as a strategic payments processor for a significant portion of Amazon's payments volume in the U.S., Europe, and Canada. The deal covers Amazon Pay and Buy with Prime on non-Amazon sites. This marks a major expansion for Stripe's embedded payments infrastructure into one of the world's largest e-commerce ecosystems.

Kasheesh Launches Card-Splitting Digital Payments Platform in the US

Kasheesh launched a digital payments platform in the US that allows consumers to split online purchases across multiple debit and credit cards via a browser extension. The platform is built in partnership with Stripe and Plaid. It represents a novel embedded payments use case at the point of checkout.

Stripe Launches Financial Connections for Direct Bank Account Access

Stripe launched Financial Connections, enabling businesses to directly connect to customers' bank accounts for verification and payments. The product competes with Plaid, Finicity, Yodlee, and MX by proxying through providers for banks without APIs. This positions Stripe as middleware bridging fintech applications to legacy banking infrastructure.

Cross River Bank Raises $620M at Over $3B Valuation

Cross River Bank, a leading BaaS provider, raised $620 million in a funding round valuing the company at over $3 billion. The round was led by Eldridge and Andreessen Horowitz with participation from T. Rowe Price, Whale Rock, and Hanaco Ventures. The capital will fuel expansion in payments, lending, and banking-as-a-service for its 80+ fintech partners including Affirm, Coinbase, and Stripe.

Mastercard Launches Send Partner Program with Leading Fintechs

Mastercard launched its Send Partner Program, onboarding technology players including Fenige, Adyen, Checkout.com, PayPal, and Stripe to drive innovation in real-time digital payments. The program enables banks and fintechs to embed Mastercard Send capabilities via white-label or integrated solutions. This broadens embedded payment rails across B2C and C2C use cases.

TrueLayer Raises $130M Series E Backed by Tiger Global and Stripe

TrueLayer, an open banking payments platform, raised $130 million in Series E funding from Tiger Global Management and Stripe, surpassing a $1 billion valuation. The company launched PayDirect, Verification API, and Payouts solutions in 2021. TrueLayer positions itself as an API-based alternative to traditional card payment networks.

Brex Expands Instant Payouts to PayPal, Square, and Stripe Merchants

Brex expanded its instant payouts service to merchants using PayPal, Square, and Stripe, enabling immediate access to earnings for a fee. Previously the feature was limited to Amazon and Shopify users. The expansion aims to improve cash flow for Brex customers who also benefit from free wires, ACH transfers, expense management, and rewards.

Stripe Launches Treasury Embedded Banking-as-a-Service for Platforms

Stripe launched Stripe Treasury, an embedded business banking API enabling platforms to offer BaaS services to their users. The product partners with Evolve Bank & Trust, Goldman Sachs, Citibank, and Barclays. This marks a significant step in integrating financial services directly into non-bank platforms without Stripe becoming a bank itself.

Stripe Acquires Nigeria's Paystack for Over $200 Million

Stripe acquired Nigerian payment gateway Paystack for over $200 million to expand its payments infrastructure across Africa. The deal represents one of the largest fintech acquisitions on the continent. It signals Stripe's strategy to embed its payment services in fast-growing African markets.

Max Levchin Highlights Embedded Lending as Fintech's Next Big Opportunity

TechCrunch reported on Max Levchin's vision for fintech's next opportunities, spotlighting how companies like Stripe Capital, Square Capital, Brex, and Shopify Capital were leveraging merchant transaction data to offer embedded lending products. This approach of using real-time cash flow data for creditworthiness was framed as the future of credit scoring.

Embedded Finance Projected as $7 Trillion Opportunity for Payment Companies

Industry analysis identified embedded finance as a $7 trillion market opportunity over ten years, with Stripe (valued at $36B) and Square ($57B) positioned as leaders. Payment facilitation companies were enabling platforms and online businesses to seamlessly integrate financial services, representing a paradigm shift in financial services distribution.

Facebook Pay Launches with Stripe and PayPal as Payment Partners

Facebook launched Facebook Pay, a unified payment experience across Facebook, Messenger, Instagram, and WhatsApp, processing payments via partnerships with Stripe and PayPal. The launch came shortly after both Stripe and PayPal withdrew from the Libra cryptocurrency project. The move embedded payments directly into Facebook's social platforms.

PayMongo Raises $2.7M from Stripe, Founders Fund, and Y Combinator

PayMongo, a Philippine online payment provider, raised $2.7 million from strategic investors including Stripe, Peter Thiel's Founders Fund, and Y Combinator. The investment highlights Stripe's strategy of backing embedded payments infrastructure in emerging markets. PayMongo aims to simplify online payments for businesses in the Philippines.

Stripe Raises $250M at $35B Pre-Money Valuation

Stripe raised a $250 million funding round at a $35 billion pre-money valuation. The raise came shortly after the launch of Stripe Capital and amid Stripe's broader push into embedded financial services. The funding underscored investor confidence in Stripe's expanding platform beyond core payments.

Stripe Launches Stripe Capital Merchant Cash Advance Service

Stripe launched Stripe Capital, an embedded lending product offering instant merchant cash advances of $5,000–$25,000 to U.S. merchants on its platform. Repayments are collected as a fixed percentage of future sales with a flat 10% fee. The product leverages Stripe's payment data for underwriting, bypassing traditional credit checks, and is funded through an unnamed bank partner.

Stripe Announces Corporate Credit Card for Business Clients

Stripe announced a corporate credit card for its business clients in September 2019, further expanding its embedded financial services offerings beyond payments and lending. The move positioned Stripe alongside competitors like Brex and Square in the corporate card space.

Step Raises $22.5M Led by Stripe to Build No-Fee Banking for Teens

Step, a mobile banking service targeting teenagers, raised $22.5 million in funding led by Stripe. The round supports Step's mission to provide no-fee banking services for a younger demographic. Stripe's lead investment highlights the payments giant's interest in embedded finance and BaaS distribution channels.

Stripe Raises $100M Series E Extension at $22.5B Valuation

Stripe raised $100 million in a Series E extension led by Tiger Global Management, reaching a $22.5 billion valuation. This made Stripe the world's most valuable private fintech, ahead of Square and Coinbase. The funding supported Stripe's expansion into embedded finance-like services including POS terminals and cash advances.

Monzo Raises £85M Series E Reaching Unicorn Status

UK challenger bank Monzo raised £85M (~$108M) in a Series E round led by General Catalyst and Accel, with participation from Thrive Capital and Stripe. The round valued Monzo at over $1.2 billion, making it the UK's newest fintech unicorn. The funding supports Monzo's growth as a digital banking platform challenging incumbents.

Stripe Launches Terminal for In-Person Payments via API

Stripe launched Stripe Terminal in the US, enabling online businesses to accept in-person payments through API integration. The product positioned Stripe in direct competition with Square and PayPal in the physical payments space. This represented a significant expansion of Stripe's embedded payments infrastructure beyond e-commerce.

Stripe Raises $245M at $20B Valuation for Global Expansion

Stripe, the payments API and infrastructure provider, raised $245 million at a $20 billion valuation in a round led by Tiger Global. Participants included DST Global, Sequoia, and others. The funds will support global engineering expansion as Stripe deepens its embedded payments platform for businesses worldwide.

Stripe Launches Issuing Platform for Embedded Card Programs

Stripe launched Stripe Issuing, an API-driven platform enabling businesses and platforms to create and issue virtual or physical credit and debit cards programmatically. The product integrates with Stripe's existing payments infrastructure and supports embedded finance use cases including corporate expense cards, consumer debit cards, and on-demand disbursements.