Fintech Stripe valued at $50 billion in latest funding round

(Reuters) – Digital payments processor Stripe said on Wednesday it was valued at $50 billion in its latest funding round, with its valuation nearly halved from its previous fundraising, amid a tough economic environment.

The company said its latest round was backed by existing investors including venture capital giants Andreessen Horowitz, Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund, General Catalyst and others.

New investors such as Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund GIC, Goldman Sachs (NYSE:) Asset and Wealth Management and Temasek also participated in the round, which raked in $6.5 billion in proceeds for Stripe.

Stripe’s capital raise constitutes what is commonly known as a down round, where the latest funding fetches a lower valuation for the company than its previous fundraise.

The company, which counts Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ:), Ford Motor (NYSE:) Co, Salesforce (NYSE:) and BMW as its customers, was valued at $95 billion in its last funding in early 2021.

After years of signing big checks for high-flying startups, investors have turned more cautious as the U.S. Federal Reserve’s monetary tightening drains out excess liquidity.

Startup metrics such as profitability and cash burn are being scrutinized more closely now.

Last year, Swedish buy now, pay later giant Klarna also had to take a down round.

Stripe was looking to use the funds to cover a tax bill and does not need the capital to run its business, the company said.

The firm has been aiming to turn profitable before going public, but is unlikely to launch an initial public offering this year, Reuters reported last month.

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