STRIPE has told potential investors it will turn a profit this year and is on track to process US$1 trillion in payments.

The payments giant forecast adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation of US$100 million this year, according to people familiar with the matter. That compares with a loss of about US$80 million in 2022 when Stripe processed US$800 billion, the people said, asking not to be identified discussing internal financial information.

Stripe has been in talks with investors after it hired JPMorgan Chase & Co and Goldman Sachs Group last month to explore options for raising funds, which it plans to use to cash out veteran employees’ restricted stock units in the coming year. The company, which has dual headquarters in San Francisco and Dublin, has been weighing both a direct listing or a private-market capital raise.

Investors including General Catalyst Partners, Founders Fund Management and Andreessen Horowitz have said they would participate in the fundraising round, according to people familiar with the matter. Thrive Capital, a venture-capital firm founded by Joshua Kushner, has said it would invest US$1 billion in Stripe as part of the round.

Representatives for Stripe and Founders Fund declined to comment, while spokespeople for General Catalyst and Andreessen Horowitz didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

Last year’s US$800 billion in payments volume marked a 25 per cent increase from a year earlier. But that was a slowdown from the 60 per cent growth it reported in 2021, showing how Stripe has faced the same headwinds that have beset rivals in the aftermath of the pandemic, as lockdowns lifted and consumers returned to in-store shopping. Stripe is known for technologies that allow customers to make payments over the internet.

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Still, the forecast demonstrates just how rapidly the 13-year-old company has grown. PayPal Holdings, for instance, only notched US$1 trillion in payments volume in 2021, 23 years after it was founded.

Falling valuation

In its latest fundraising talks, Stripe has discussed terms that would value the company at US$55 billion prior to the capital infusion, according to the people. That’s far from the US$95 billion valuation it received when it raised US$600 million from investors in 2021.

But as the company has adjusted to the worsening macroeconomic conditions of the last year, it has cut its internal valuation multiple times. In November, the firm eliminated 1,000 jobs to rein in costs.

Stripe was among tech firms that spent more heavily on adding talent and pushing into new areas during the depths of the pandemic when it saw spending volumes soar. Those moves weighed on results: Last year’s loss compares with US$500 million in adjusted profit in 2021, the Information has previously reported.

“Our business is fundamentally well-positioned to weather harsh circumstances,” chief executive officer Patrick Collison told employees at the time. “We have always taken pride in being a capital-efficient business, and we think this attribute is important to preserve. To adapt ourselves appropriately for the world we’re headed into, we need to reduce our costs.” BLOOMBERG