Have you ever paid with Stripe? I bet you have. This innovative payment platform has become ubiquitous, making it incredibly easy to pay for goods and services online. And it’s all thanks to two Irish brothers behind the world’s top payment system, Patrick and John Collison.
Patrick and John Collison came to the USA from a rural village in Ireland at a young age. Following their entrepreneurial dream, they founded Stripe in 2010. Their vision was simple: to create a payment platform that would make it easy for small businesses to accept payments from anywhere in the world. And they succeeded beyond their wildest dreams.
Nowadays, the Collison brothers inspire entrepreneurs and innovators everywhere. Their hard work has created a payment platform that has revolutionized how we pay for goods and services online. Their achievements speak for themselves, as the company’s value increased from 9.2 billion dollars in 2018 to an impressive 97 billion dollars in 2021, making it the most valuable private company, however with numerous challenges.
This is a tangible and powerful example of what can be achieved through hard work and dedication. Shall we take a closer look at their path to success?
The early years: How the Collison brothers found their passion
John and Patrick’s childhood may have been filled with challenges regarding the fact that they were born in a small rural town Dromineer, County Tipperary, Ireland, growing up without any Internet access and without having the opportunity to communicate with friends. But they didn’t let that stop them from finding their passion. Living far away from school and not having the opportunity to hang out with other kids after classes, they found joy in each other’s company and in the pages of the books. With parents being busy running their businesses, these two young men had the freedom to explore and discover what they truly loved.
Eventually, the brothers realized their true calling when they stumbled upon a programming book at the library. John and Patrick dedicated themselves to learning everything they could about programming, and before they knew it, they had built their very first website. That moment was an actual moment of pride for them and a testament to the power of hard work and determination.
Once Emily Chang, an American journalist, asked the siblings at the Studio 1.0 interview whether they hacked each other´s websites.
“I think it’s an important duty of a 16-year-old older brother to help educate the slightly younger brother about the potential security downsides, so I took that obligation very seriously,” answered Patrick, warmly smiling.
During the interview, the brothers found the situation amusing and laughed, indicating their close bond as brothers. This dialogue shows their light-hearted friendship, full of inside jokes that only they can understand. Their connection is unbreakable, forged through years of shared experiences and a deep understanding of each other’s personalities, becoming one of the essential points of their success.
University and the beginning of the career path
Still attending the school, they have already founded Auctomatic, a company that addressed certain problems they had observed with eBay. Within a mere 10 months, they designed, financed, launched, experimented with, and ultimately sold the business for an impressive $5 million, making them wealthy even before graduating from high school.
Meanwhile, Patrick won the 41st Young Scientist of the Year award for his work with the programming language Lisp, completing his final year of high school a year earlier and enrolling at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. On the other hand, John obtained the highest score ever achieved by a student in the Irish Leaving Certificate, the final exam for Irish secondary schools. He accomplished this before departing for Harvard.
However, they both managed to drop out of their prestigious universities in 2009 to pursue their passion for internet businesses and side projects. Their parents supported them in this decision, and the siblings are still grateful for their unwavering support.
After getting accepted into Y Combinator, John and Patrick moved to Buenos Aires to start building their own company. They were determined to get up and running with real customers as soon as possible, so they programmed tirelessly every day.
The success story behind Stripe
The brothers knew that many consumer payment methods would be successful, but what was really missing, was a platform for businesses to manage the complexity of doing business online, including payment management, treasury management, law, and compliance. It was their primary focus, and they worked tirelessly to make it happen.
What is Stripe company?
John and Patrick’s persistent dedication and determination culminated in creating Stripe in 2010, an innovative online payment processing platform that empowers businesses of all sizes to accept and process online payments efficiently.
“Who owns Stripe nowadays?” is a common question among those interested in the online payment processing platform. The answer is that Stripe is owned by its co-founders, John and Patrick, who continue to serve as top executives at Stripe and guide the company’s growth and evolution.
How does Stripe work?
Stripe’s payment processing platform allows companies to accept payments online and manage transactions from their websites and mobile applications in over 135 currencies and is available in over 40 countries, making it an excellent option for businesses with a global customer base.
Its services also include fraud detection, subscription billing, and international payments, and it offers fast payouts, typically within 2 days, which can help businesses with their cash flow management.
So, what does Stripe do in simple terms? It provides businesses with the tools they need to succeed online.
The factors contributing to Stripe’s rise in popularity
Back in May 2011, Stripe acquired a $2 million investment from a group of venture capitalists, including Peter Thiel, Elon Musk, Sequoia Capital, SV Angel, and Andreessen Horowitz. Stripe then launched publicly in September 2011 after a lengthy private beta period.
In 2014, they secured another funding round that caused their valuation to soar from $1.7 billion to $3.4 billion in just a couple of months. By 2019, Stripe had raised a jaw-dropping $250 million and was valued at $35 billion.
With these investments, Stripe not only provided startups with the ability to accept payments but also launched several innovative services. These included Radar, a machine learning-based fraud detection system that reduced credit card fraud by 25%, and Atlas, which offers a streamlined business formation service accessible to anyone in the world. And Issuing is a platform that provides businesses with white-labeled credit cards and offers a cash-back percentage of the fee Stripe collects from its customers.
Patrick Collison, one of the visionary founders, also attributes Stripe’s enormous success to its collaboration with various startups and industry giants such as Facebook, Amazon, Booking.com, Lyft, and others, declaring that the brothers’ creation has enabled other businesses to achieve their aspirations and goals quickly and effectively.
Stripe’s challenges
Despite facing numerous challenges on its way to success, Stripe has emerged as one of the world’s most valuable private companies, valued at over $95 billion as of 2021. However, the fintech giant has recently undergone some setbacks, including an 11% cut in the internal value of its shares. As of March 2023, Stripe is valued at $50 billion.
In November 2022, the company laid off around 14% of its workforce, which affected over 1,100 employees. Yet, Stripe’s co-founder, Patrick Collison, accepted the blame for the situation and publicly acknowledged the mistakes made by the company’s leadership.
Patrick Collison admitted that the company had been overly optimistic about the internet economy’s near-term growth in 2022 and 2023, and they grew operating costs too quickly, leading to operational inefficiencies.
Despite these setbacks, Stripe remains an inspiration to aspiring entrepreneurs worldwide, showcasing the importance of acknowledging mistakes and taking corrective actions.
Where to find the key to success?
The Collison brothers’ key to success is believing in their company’s future success and the ability to work together effectively for a long time. Patrick and John state that they highly trust each other, which has fostered a collaborative environment for over 13 years. Even when asked about disagreements, they can’t recall the last time they had one.
In an interview with Emily Chang, Patrick Collison shared some advice for aspiring entrepreneurs:
¨You can do it wherever you are today. I would take advantage of the community´s tools and knowledge the Internet makes available and start where you are right now¨.
This advice reflects the Collison brothers’ own experience of starting and growing their business from scratch. They’ve proven that with determination and a bit of luck, anyone can achieve great things. Who knows what their next project will be? One thing’s for sure – it’s bound to be fantastic.
