Stripe
Hard to leave Stage 2
Stripe taxes revenue like any processor, but its API surplus and self-serve onboarding kept loyalty high. Billing, Atlas, and adjacent services deepen lock-in without the worst consumer-wallet tricks—mostly stage 2.
- Since
- 2010
- Function
- Fintech
- VC-backed
- Yes
- Public
- No
News signals
More in Fintech
-
Cash App
2 Hard to leaveSquare’s consumer wallet: still relatively simple, but Bitcoin, stocks, and borrowing expand the funnel toward fee-bearing products.
-
PayPal
3 Cashing inIncumbent digital wallet: fees, holds on seller funds, and upsells push value toward the network and away from edge users.
-
Venmo
3 Cashing inSocial P2P app folded into PayPal: instant transfer fees, crypto and card upsells, and default public feed history (since reined in).
-
Wise
1 Plenty for usersInternational money transfer service built around mid-market exchange rates and transparent flat fees; publicly traded and profitable without resorting to hidden FX spreads.