PayPal's new CEO makes Venmo a standalone business unit as potential buyers circle (4 minute read)
PayPal is separating Venmo into a standalone business unit as the company restructures amid takeover interest from rivals like Stripe.
What: PayPal's new CEO Enrique Lores is reorganizing the company into three segments: Venmo as a standalone unit, a PayPal-branded business for merchants and consumers, and a payment services unit including Braintree and crypto operations. Venmo, with nearly 100 million users, is considered the company's most valuable asset.
Why it matters: The restructuring makes Venmo easier to track or potentially sell separately, as PayPal faces takeover interest from potential buyers including Stripe. PayPal has lost ground to Apple, Google, and Stripe in e-commerce transactions, with its stock down roughly 80% from pandemic-era highs.
Original article
Venmo is being separated into its own standalone unit. PayPal is facing takeover interest, and Venmo is considered the company's most valuable and most acquirable asset. The separation will make it easier to track Venmo's progress or potentially sell the business to another company. PayPal is looking to recruit a digital banking executive to run the new Venmo segment.