PayPal turned down $53bn, and pointed to a beat and a $70 target

July 29, 2026 Emily Chen Clock

PayPal Answers Stripe’s $53bn Bid: Open, but Not at That Price

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PayPal turned down a $53 billion offer from Stripe and decided to pursue its own turnaround strategy, aiming for a share price of around $70. Currently, PayPal's board is asking shareholders to back its plan rather than accepting the bid at $60.50 per share.

July 29, 2026 - 3:09 pm

Image by: Sagar Savla

PayPal has publicly responded to Stripe’s $53 billion acquisition offer, rejecting it at the current price. The company's CEO, Enrique Lores, expressed encouragement with PayPal's progress and conviction in its current strategy during a Q2 earnings call.

Not at $60.50

PayPal had previously rejected the bid as too low, and its recent financial results provided justification for that stance. Cantor values PayPal closer to $70 per share, indicating that the offered price undervalues the company if the turnaround is successful.

A Strong Quarter for PayPal

Revenue rose 5% to $8.68 billion, surpassing expectations, and adjusted earnings of $1.38 per share exceeded analyst forecasts. Despite a slight decline in net income to $1.1 billion, PayPal raised its full-year guidance, projecting a growth in key profit measures this year.

The Turnaround Strategy

Lores attributes the progress to his turnaround strategy, which involves restructuring PayPal into three units, aiming for $1.5 billion in run-rate savings over two to three years, and reducing approximately one-fifth of staff while integrating AI into coding, support, and risk management. He describes this as "improving execution."

A Cautious Approach

However, the board has not initiated a public auction, typically used to determine fair market value. Instead, they're asking shareholders to trust their turnaround plan. This is a significant request, especially considering the board's small stake (around 0.6%) in PayPal and the stock's 80% decline since 2021.

The Irony of Stripe’s Bidder

Stripe, the rival bidding for PayPal, played a role in making PayPal a laggard in the payments industry. With its cash reserves and expansionist ambitions, Stripe is part of a broader consolidation trend in the payments sector. Acquiring PayPal could offer a shortcut to achieving their goals, but for now, PayPal prefers to bet on itself and challenge Stripe to pay a higher price.

Story by Cris

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